We're the Same
by SilverKitsune2017
Summary: Fem Sasuke x Gaara. "Why did you argue on my behalf?" Suki Uchiha asked. "Because we're the same." Gaara replied. She reminded him of one of the roses that bloomed in the desert, despite the arid conditions. It seemed they survived as a show of defiance, just like her. He understood her, she mused. They had walked in darkness and were now finding their place in the light.
1. Chapter 1

We're the Same

 _ **Author's Note:**_ I had a couple requests for a **female Sasuke x Gaara story.** In this story, Sasuke was born female and is named Suki. If any of those things bother you, you might want to turn back now. Reviews are always appreciated. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this story.

 _ **Chapter Notation:**_ Flashbacks will be in italics. This chapter provides a look inside the mind of Gaara when he had the demon. It will be rather dark in the flashback, but of course as everyone knows he changes over time.

 _ **Into the Light:**_ I made up this book. It's not cannon. I think that in a world like the Narutoverse, there would have to be books about the Great Ninja Wars, especially autobiographies.

 _ **Disclaimer:**_ I own nothing and make no profit off of any of my stories.

Chapter One

Gaara was the youngest Kazekage in the history of the Sand Village and possibly the youngest Kage in the history of the Five Great Nations. While he wasn't necessarily an academic, most people would have said that he was intelligent. He was certainly well versed in ninja matters, politics, economics, and even agriculture. But he had just done something extremely stupid.

"Lord Kazekage?!" The Raikage asks in disbelief when sand suddenly surrounds his neck like a noose.

He had "attacked" the Raikage at the meeting. Gaara hadn't meant to. His sand just reacted instinctively.

The war was over. Thanks mostly to Team Seven, Madara had been defeated. Now all the Kages were once again convening to decide what would happen next. One of the most pressing concerns was what to do about Suki Uchiha.

"I'm not going to allow it. I won't let you execute her." Gaara says, stunning even himself with the ferocity of his words.

They wanted to execute her. The Raikage had voiced what the red head knew many others were thinking. She was far too strong and her mental stability far too questionable to be allowed to live. Many worried that she would become a female Madara.

"You would dare to attack another Kage on that traitor's behalf?!" He thunders in outrage.

"If you kill her, you will upset Naruto. If you upset Naruto, you will have a war on your hands. I assure you that most of the world would take his side over yours. Suki Uchiha played a major role in our victory. While her actions in the past have been unfortunate, without her we would still be trapped in a dream world. Honor dictates that at the very least that is enough to prevent her execution." He states.

"Gaara has a point. That and I'm not too happy with the idea of my former student being executed either." Kakashi adds in a deceptively cheerful voice.

"I DON'T CARE THAT IT'S A KAGE SUMMIT! LET ME IN!" Naruto roars and slams down the doors, racing inside.

Gaara and Kakashi rub the back of their heads sheepishly. Trust Naruto to make a dramatic entrance. The blonde barrels over to the table and pleads for his friend's life to be spared.

Hours later, it was agreed that Suki Uchiha would be get to live. Though she would be under house arrest for several months. Once that was over, she would have to wear a bracelet that would let Naruto know her location at all times.

They Kages normally would have required ANBUS to monitor her, but they knew that there were only a handful of people who could subdue Suki Uchiha. As skilled as the Leaf's ANBUS were, they were no match for her. So the tracking bracelet had been the compromise.

Just as Gaara was about to head back to the Sand, he felt a familiar chakra nearby. Suki was behind him. He didn't even have to look back to know it.

"I know why Kakashi and Naruto defended me. Why did you argue on my behalf?" She asks.

"Because we're the same." Gaara answers and flits off, remembering when he had first realized that fact at the Chunin Exams.

 _Gaara walked towards the Leaf Village with Temari and Kankuro. Though they were related by blood, the twelve year old boy had no real emotional connection with his siblings. They had been placed on the same team because no one else would willingly join the demon's team._

 _"We're almost there." Temari, his sister, called out._

 _That is what they called him. Gaara of the Sand or the demon. The red head decided it didn't matter what they called him. He had one purpose in life and that was to prove that his existence was stronger than others. He could accomplish this only by killing. And that was why he was perfect for this mission._

 _"Thank God. I'm beat. We've been traveling for days." Kankuro commented._

 _The Sound and Sand were teaming up to attack the Leaf Village during the Chunin Exams. The reasons why mattered little to him. He just knew that he was being given free reign to kill. And that made him as close to happy as Gaara ever got._

 _"You there. Who are you and what are you doing here?" A girl about their age demanded to know with an authoritative tone that no child their age should possess._

 _"Who me?" Temari asked._

 _"Not you. The one with the gourd on his back." She specified and Gaara noted that it appeared that she was here with her team._

 _"Gaara Sabaku of the Sand. I'm curious about you as well." The red head replied._

 _Gaara had meant that with the utmost sincerity. There was something about her that called to him. He decided it was her eyes._

 _They were black as night and held just as many secrets. She was like him in a way. This wasn't a child, not really. She had a purpose like him. He knew a killer's eyes when he saw them and he was looking at them now._

 _There was such a fierceness in those dark orbs. A complete confidence. Yet as he took another look, hidden rather well was a lot of pain. There was a deep sadness about her. But it was a dignified sadness. She had a regal baring that didn't belong to a girl of at most thirteen years._

 _"Suki Uchiha." She answered._

 _"Hey! Isn't anyone going to ask my name!" Naruto protested._

 _Both speakers ignored the blonde. Gaara noted her appearance further. He'd never really thought about girls before. To him, gender mattered little._

 _The red head certainly hadn't bothered thinking about whether someone was pretty. But she definitely was. Perhaps pretty was too tame of an adjective, beautiful might have been more accurate._

 _She reminded him of one of the few roses that bloomed in the desert. He had no idea how the beautiful flowers survived the arid conditions. It seemed out of defiance more than anything else. And that is what her gaze was, defiant._

 _"We're the same. Your eyes are like mine." He said._

 _Her hair was midnight black and came a few inches past her shoulders. Two long bangs framed the sides of her face elegantly and he noted that her hair was spiky for a girl. She had ivory cream colored skin and long eyelashes. Her shirt was blue and had a very high collar and she wore white shorts._

 _"We're the same. Your eyes are like mine_." _Suki's eyes widened at these words._

 _"We're here for the Chunin Exams." Temari said and showed their documents._

 _"What are the Chunin Exams?" Naruto asked and Suki smacked her forehead in exasperation._

 _"Um okay then, you can go." Sakura said, smiling nervously._

 _The Sand Siblings head off. Gaara takes one last look back at Suki as they do so. He wanted to fight her most of all. He had never actually looked forward to something before. But he knew that he was looking forward to the chance to fight her._

Six months later, Gaara visit's the Leaf Village. He smiles as he walks the village streets with Naruto. It was a wonderful experience, to see how life had gone back to normal after the war.

"I'm surprised the Uchiha isn't with you." He muses.

"Oh she's at her place. I guess she decided to restore her District. She mostly left it alone after the massacre, other than the house she lived in. So it's taking a lot of work. Actually, she doesn't leave her District much, even after the house arrest ended." Naruto says.

Gaara frowns. Naruto might not realize it. But the red head had a pretty good idea why she was staying in the Uchiha District so much. She likely didn't want to face the judgment of the rest of the village.

More than likely, she now occupied a niche similar to the one he had as a Genin. She was powerful weapon for the Leaf Village. One that most of the village was afraid might be used against them someday.

"Actually, we should probably stop by. I mean it'll be good for her to have some visitors!" Naruto says cheerfully and Gaara nods.

The Kazekage follows his friend to the Uchiha District. It did seem that her efforts were paying off. Perhaps a quarter of the place had been restored. Gaara could tell that once upon a time, it had been quite a beautiful place to live.

That's when he saw her. Suki was using a ladder to replace some windows. Of course, he knew better than to shout at a person on a ladder. Naruto, on the other hand, did not.

"SUKI! Thought you might like some company! Gaara's here too!" The blonde yelled out.

Suki was startled and looked around too quickly. The ladder slipped out from under her feet. Gaara raced over and caught her just before she would have fallen straight onto the harsh sidewalk.

Suki had been working on replacing some windows, when she heard a loud shout. She was a fearsome ninja, but she hadn't expected anyone to be in her District. So Naruto's loudmouth startled her. She lost her balance and felt the ladder slip out from under her. Suki braces for an impact that never came.

"Huh?" She asks and opens her eyes slowly, realizing something or someone had caught her.

"It's alright." Gaara tells her.

"Gaara?" She asks and he nods.

Suki felt her cheeks begin to heat up with embarrassment. She was had fucking faced off against Madara Uchiha (with help of course, but still) and here she was, falling off of a ladder like some kind of klutz. This was made even more humiliating by the fact that it was Gaara, a Kage, who caught her.

 _Roses and sandalwood._ That's what she smelled like, Gaara decided. He wasn't sure where the roses came from. The Uchiha didn't strike him as the type of woman who spent much time around flowers. But it was a very natural, feminine scent and he'd never seen her Sharingan this up close before. Her eyes looked like two rubies.

"Thanks." She mutters and Gaara nods.

Idly, Suki notes that it didn't seem like the red head was planning on setting her down anytime soon. But for some reason, she found she wasn't in a particular hurry to rush out of his arms. As any decent ninja would do, she took this time to observe her surroundings.

Oh those biceps were new. She figured that wearing such a heavy gourd on your back for years, probably had some advantages. She decided she quite liked the way his white Kage robes contrasted with his blood red hair and his eyes were really stunning up close. Such an unusual shade of blue, aqua. The black markings around his eyes had never gone away, even after the demon was removed. She decided they gave him a feral appearance.

"Good catch, Gaara. Suki, are you okay?" Naruto asks.

"Yes, I am. No thanks to you. You idiot! You don't just yell at someone who is on a ladder." Suki scoffs.

"Sorry, didn't realize you were such a scaredy cat and so easily startled." The blonde says.

Gaara shakes his head. Suki practically leapt out of his arms and lunged at the blonde. Soon enough the two of them were rolling around on the dirt road in a flurry of tangled limbs. It was honestly, difficult to tell who was "winning" this play fight.

"Now who is the scaredy cat?!" Suki growls at him and slams her fist into his stomach.

"Ouch! That actually hurt!" Naruto whined.

"Good. Maybe it will teach you not to shoot your mouth off." She says, getting up, and shooting Naruto a glare.

Gaara shakes his head in amusement. It seemed some things would never change. Many considered Naruto and Suki to have almost Godlike combat abilities, but they were still teenagers. And no matter the situation, they would always fight like cats and dogs.

To Gaara, Suki was clearly the cat. She was graceful, adaptable, and only a select few were allowed the privilege of her tolerance. Cats had always struck the red head as a rather proud animal.

In stark contrast, Naruto was the dog. He was loyal, friendly, and a natural extravert. He would do anything for his friends. He seemed to thrive on being in a crowd. So he supposed it was only natural they would clash on just about everything.

"Oh something smells good!" Naruto says.

"Dinner should be done by now." Suki observes and heads into the house.

"Wait, you cook?!" The blonde asks if Suki had just told him that she had two heads.

Gaara raises an eyebrow at his friend's shock. Unlike Naruto, it didn't particularly surprise him to learn that Suki could cook. He assumed she would learn out of necessity, if nothing else. He doubted she the last Uchiha would have been foolish enough to eat any prepared by someone else in the Sound Village.

"Yes, loser I can cook. Oh and I can cook more than just ramen." She scoffs at him.

"Hey! I resent that." Naruto protests.

"You can resent it all you want, it's accurate. You, my friend, are absolutely hopeless in the kitchen." Gaara states with open amusement as they walk inside the Uchiha's house.

It was clean, he noticed. Suki was either a neat freak or she didn't really have anything better to do than to clean her home, cook, and work on District repairs. Gaara realized that she could only train with Naruto so many hours of the day. She had to pass the time somehow.

That's when he noticed some rather heavy books placed here and there. It seemed reading was one of the ways, she passed the time. Certainly, she was highly intelligent, but it was difficult for the red head to picture her doing something as casual as reading. Still he couldn't help but be curious, he glanced at some of the titles.

"So what's for dinner?" Naruto asks cheerfully.

"Steak and salad. Since you already invited yourself in, you might as well stay for dinner. Gaara can as well, I still owe him for arguing along with you and Kakashi on my behalf at the second Kage Summit." She says.

"That's very kind of you. Though I never realized you were such a romantic." Gaara muses.

"Gaara, what are you talking about?" The blue eyed ninja asks in confusion.

Suki immediately saw where Gaara's eyes were lingering. Damn it. He was looking at the book entitled _Into the Light._

"I'm not." Suki states and leads them into the dinning room.

"Your taste in literature disagrees." Gaara replies in amusement.

"Wait is Suki reading Pervy Sage's books or something?" Naruto asks.

"Not exactly. But _Into the Light_ is considered a classic. It is a story about the First Great Ninja War. A woman falls in love with a ninja from a rival ninja nation. The title comes from a passage in the book where she describes him as her light. She is like an insect that can not resist going into the light. It's a mixture of bloody firsthand accounts of actual battles, day to day life during that era, romance, and is considered to be one of the greatest erotic pieces of literature in the ninja world." Gaara explains.

"…" Naruto is speechless.

"It seems I'm not the only one who read it. That was quite a thorough description." Suki says and cocks her head to the side as if trying to process the fact that she and Gaara shared similar taste when it came to reading.

"My uncle gave me a copy. I think he just wanted to give me something to do at night, when I couldn't sleep." The red head admits and Naruto's eyes soften.

He knew exactly what his friend was referring to. When he had the demon, if he slept, the One Tails would come out to play. And that usually meant a lot of blood would be spilt. Gaara rarely talked about what life had been like for him before he met Naruto, but the blonde knew enough to realize it had been horrific.

"I read it for the firsthand accounts of the battles and to find out more about what life was like in that era." Suki tries to defend herself.

"Of course." Gaara says, though his voice came out raspy as always, Suki could swear she heard just a trace of amusement underneath it.

"I do!" She protests.

"I was agreeing with you." The Kazekage says and bites into the meal, trying to hide his smile.

He'd never seen her flustered about anything before. He'd seen Suki furious, smug, and even frightened before. But he had never seen her actually embarrassed about something.

 _"I read it for the firsthand accounts of the battles and to find out more about what life was like in that era," his ass,_ Gaara thought. Suki would not be acting in such a fashion if that was the only reason she read that book. He wondered which was her favorite part and decides not to contemplate the matter further.

"You weren't agreeing with me. You were humoring me." She says accusingly.

"Perhaps a bit." He admits.

"Seriously, let me see what the Hell is in this book that is such a big deal." Naruto says and opens it to a marked page.

"Naruto, don't!" Suki says.

Naruto reads the page and his eyes widen. Wow. Jirayia was innocent compared to whoever wrote this. The blonde didn't even know the human body could move like that.

"Suki you are such a closet pervert." Naruto says.

"CHIDORI!" She says, rising to her feet, and charging up her trademark attack.

"Uchiha, do you really wish to ruin your lovely home?" Gaara asks.

"I guess you're right. I'll just kick his ass outside." She mutters.

"You wish!" Naruto says.

A few hours later, after sparring with Suki and having a good meal, Naruto had dozed off on the couch. Gaara shakes his head at his friend's antics. Only Naruto.

"So why are you in the Leaf? I know you are friends with Naruto, but most people wouldn't make a three day journey to socialize." Suki asks.

"I came to speak with Kakashi about a matter relating to intervillage relations." He answers honestly, but vaguely.

"It's finally starting to happen, isn't it?" She asks.

"What do you mean?" The red asks.

"Some of the leaders are growing jealous of Naruto's popularity. They see him as a threat to their power later down the line." The brunette answers.

"Perceptive. Unfortunately, I do have my concerns. Yes, I'll admit that I am a bit anxious. I have nothing concrete to go on at this moment. But I think it is best to start planning now." He says.

Suki sighs. She knew it would happen eventually. One didn't achieve Godlike status in the ninja world without their being some consequences. Most people thought of Naruto as some benevolent deity now. The idiot didn't have an ambitious bone in his body. But the Daimyos didn't know that. Naturally, jealousy would bloom.

"Is there anything that can be done about it?" She asks.

"There are a few things, though I find the suggestions distasteful myself." Gaara admits.

"You aren't seriously suggesting he should marry a Daimyo's daughter or something are you?" Suki asks.

"Not seriously. Naruto will only marry for love. Besides, that would just make the power imbalance even greater and anger the other four Daimyos. No an arranged marriage between Naruto and a Daimyo's daughter simply isn't the most logical course of action." He states.

"Then what is?" The last Uchiha inquires.

"I will let you know once I think of suitable answer." Gaara admits.

She simply nods. At least Gaara was aware of the problem. Suki very much doubted that was the case with Naruto.

"How are you…adjusting?" He asks awkwardly, trying to change the conversation.

"About as well as can be expected." She replies.

"You're hiding in your District." Gaara states.

"I am not hiding." She glowers at him for that suggestion.

"I don't blame you. It's not that they are bad people. It's just that they don't understand what it's like." He offers.

"And what do you think that you understand?" She hisses at him.

"I know what's it like to walk in darkness for years and not to see a single trace of light and then to try to latch onto the first ray you see. You use it to pull yourself out of the darkness and once you do, people are still afraid of you. It's difficult. There's no shame in not wanting to face their judgment. I had the same problem after the Chunin Exams." He admits.

"Does it ever get any easier?" The brunette dares herself to ask.

"Saving the village from Deidara seemed to help in my case, tremendously. You helped to save the world, one would think that would merit you some…consideration. But over time it does. A journey of a thousand miles begins with one step. The first step is always the hardest and you've made that one." He says.

"I deserve worse for what I did and I know it. I should count my blessings that all I'm getting is frightened and hateful glances. Sometimes hushed whispers. None of them have the courage to say anything to my face though. They are all sheep." She replies.

"You don't deserve worse. Your actions while misguided were not your fault. No more than mine were before I met Naruto. We were the product of environments." He tells her.

Suki smiles. She wished she could believe that. Gaara at least had a good excuse. The demon had done it, not him. Everything she did though, she had chosen to do. It was different in her case.

It was funny, she mused. They were really little more than strangers when you got down to it. But really, if she thought about it…he was the only one that understood her in a strange way.

Gaara was the only person who hadn't tried to change her. He realized that she was darkness and that it was her choice whether or not she wanted to pull herself out of it. Unlike Naruto, who had dragged her kicking and screaming every step of the way.

"How long do you think it will be until he wakes?" Gaara asks.

"Mmm probably not for another hour or two. Why do you ask?" Suki replies.

"Well we never did finish our match at the Chunin exams." The red head says.

"Was that a challenge, Lord Kazekage?" Suki asks with a sly smile.

"It could be interpreted that way." He replies.

"You're on. My kicking your ass won't cause an international incident, will it?" The Uchiha woman inquires.

"No. I issued the challenge. I will accept the consequences. Though I believe it will be you who loses and not I." He states and heads outside with her.

"You're pretty cocky." Suki says with a smirk.

"I have good reason to be. I know that you will refrain from using certain moves in your District. You wouldn't want to destroy all your hard work. It is a level playing field." He reasons.

"When you put it that way, this might actually be interesting." She says and gets into a defensive position.


	2. Chapter 2

We're the Same

Author's Note: Thanks for the reviews. Lol I really wish Gaara x Sasuke was a more popular pairing (regardless of gender). Oh well, as I always say maybe we'll start a trend. I hope you enjoy this chapter.

Chapter Two

 _Glorious, joyous, and painful._ It was a pure adrenaline rush, Gaara notes. That's what fighting the Uchiha was like.

There were few ninjas who could truly match or even surpass a Kage in combat. Suki Uchiha was one of them. True she was holding back to a certain extent, but she was going as hard as she could without risking destroying her District. She was like Naruto in that way, she poured everything she had into her fights.

"Seriously, Gaara. Handcuffs?" Suki raises an eyebrow and looked down at her hands, which were now cuffed with sand.

"My intention is merely to win, not to cause you physical harm. Restraining you seems like a suitable way to accomplish that." He defends himself.

All of that was true of course. Gaara was an honest person. He didn't believe in lying for the most part. But lying by omission, that was acceptable from his standpoint.

His sand reacted to his will. Sometimes even his subconscious will. He blamed the book mostly. There was one rather interesting passage in it that involved handcuffs that he remembered reading with a certain…fondness.

"Gaara, remind me again what happens to sand if it gets hot enough?" Suki asks with a smirk.

"It becomes glass. Why do you ask?" The red head replies in confusion, not sure where the sultry brunette was going with this.

"No reason." She says and blows a fireball down at the handcuffs, turning the sand into glass.

Suki wastes no time. She slams her hands against the side of a building, shattering the glass. That was when the glass was shattered and the Kazekage was reminded that the Uchiha was a ninja who wasn't afraid to get herself injured, if it meant winning a battle.

"That was foolish of you. The glass could have cut you severely." He says and walks over to her, apparently intent on intent on checking to see if that was indeed the case in this situation.

"Haku, Deidara, Orochimaru, Itachi, and Madara. What do they all have in common?" Suki asks him as she sighs and lets the red head inspect her hands.

"They were all exceptionally powerful ninjas who are now dead." He answers automatically.

His eyes scan her arms mostly. Her arms after all were the area most likely to have gotten cut. He winced. Her beautiful milky white skin was now accented by an all too familiar crimson red liquid.

She was bleeding. It was certainly not life threatening. But it was far from pleasant. Her face had also been cut.

"And they all fought me. Perhaps you can see the correlation." She says as if it didn't her at all that she was bleeding badly.

"Correlation does not equal causation. Come. Let's get you treated before Naruto wakes up. I doubt you are any more eager to explain this to him than I am. Shall we call it a draw?" He asks.

Suki frowns. She was not particularly happy that their fight had ended so quickly. The last Uchiha had been enjoying herself.

It was always exciting to be challenged, especially when it was by someone other than Naruto. (She reveled in their battles, but she had fought him so many times before…it was beginning to get a bit repetitive.) Still she couldn't argue with his logic.

"Alright. You have a point. A draw It is." She says and allows herself to be escorted back inside by the Kazekage.

"Do you feel any glass inside you?" He asks as he turns on the sink and soaks a washcloth.

She shakes her head. No, she didn't. She was all too familiar with what glass felt like inside her. Well more specifically ice, but close enough. Damn Haku for turning her into a human pincushion when she was twelve.

"That's good. You should still have a professional medic look you over just to be sure a few small ones didn't embed themselves underneath your skin though." He says and runs the cloth over her skin.

"Gaara, I can do it myself." She protests.

"Uchiha, don't make me use the handcuffs again. Stop being a difficult patient." He warns her and Suki shivers at his tone of voice there was something, both authoritative and incredibly suggestive about it at the moment.

She simply shrugs though. The brunette allows Gaara to play doctor. Surprisingly, he seemed remarkably skilled at it. His touch was extremely gentle and thorough. Suki half suspected that this was because he was afraid she'd lose her patience with him and fire off a Chidori or fireball at the Kazekage.

"Alright. If you want to play doctor, I guess that's fine." She mutters and Gaara's lips quirk upwards in amusement.

"I didn't mean it THAT way." The brunette protests when she saw that look on his face.

"I didn't say anything." Gaara murmurs and applies some disinfectant cream to her face.

That was true. He hadn't SAID anything. But that expression said it all. Who knew that Gaara knew what the phrase, _Playing Doctor_ meant? Well he had read that book. So there were probably a lot of things he was aware of that she hadn't thought he would be before knowing that little fact about him.

"You didn't have to. The expression written all over your face said it for you." She says.

"Forgive me if I don't want to scar your pretty skin over a friendly training session." He says and bandages her arms.

Suki blinks. Had he just called her skin, _pretty?_ She wasn't aware that word was even in his vocabulary, much less that he would apply it to her so freely.

"You think my skin is pretty?" She asks in disbelief.

"To quote you, I didn't mean it THAT way. I am merely saying from an aesthetic perspective it is quite pleasant to look at. It looks like fine ivory." He defends himself.

Naruto wakes up. He heard voices coming from the kitchen. So he goes to investigate. He blinks when he saw Suki with bandages on her arms and Gaara applying medicinal cream to her face.

"What happened and what looks like fine ivory?" The blonde asks.

Suki sighs. Wonderful. Now they would have to explain to Naruto what happened. She just hoped he wouldn't have a fit and burst her eardrums.

"We were training and there was a slight accident." Gaara explains in a very reasonable tone of voice, as if it was the most natural thing in the world for him to be tending to Suki's injuries.

"Oh yeah. That happens sometimes. Sorry, I fell asleep." Naruto says cheerfully.

"It's not a big deal. It's late anyway. Maybe you should take Gaara back to his hotel room and head to your own place. I have a lot of cleaning up to do. Usually it's just me so there aren't this many dishes." She sighs and frowns at the dishes.

Naruto felt a little guilty. He had barged in announced with Gaara and now she was stuck with the cleanup duty. But knowing his teammate, she'd probably end up trying to kill him if he touched her precious fine china.

Suki was more than a little OCD about keeping her house clean and that especially included the dishes. She had once explained they had been in her family for generations. (Apparently china like that wasn't made anymore or something.)

"You sure you don't mind? I mean I could leave a clone behind to give you a hand with dish duty, if you want." Naruto offers.

"No. Thanks. Knowing you, the clone would end up breaking more dishes than it would cleaning them." Suki replies and Gaara tries not snicker at the outraged expression on Naruto's face or her biting comment.

The Kazekage grabs the sleeve of Naruto's shirt and drags him off. Suki was correct. It was late and the journey to the Leaf had been a long run. He could use some sleep. And he definitely wouldn't get any sleep if Naruto and Suki had another of their "play fights."

"Hey! You don't have to drag me." Naruto protests at the treatment.

"I had to drag you. I know you and the Uchiha. You would have ended up fighting and destroying her District. Then she would have tried to destroy your face for ruining all her hard work." The Kage explains.

"Yeah. I guess you're right. So is…there something going on with you and Suki?" Naruto asks out of the blue.

Gaara freezes on their way to the hotel. Damn it. How was he supposed to answer that? No. There wasn't anything actually going on between them. But he was still drawn to her.

The red head wasn't stupid. He knew that whatever her feelings were for her, he couldn't act on them. She was a former S Class Criminal and was just barely beginning to get her life back in order. He was a Kage. She had attacked a Kage Summit!

It would cause a massive panic if they were together. And he wasn't even sure what his feelings for her were exactly. He knew they were powerful and they were definitely primal. But they were easier to ignore when they were in completely separate nations.

"Why would you ask that?" Gaara replies for lack of any other coherent response.

"Well you caught her when she fell." Naruto begins and Gaara gives him a look that clearly said, _"So?"_

"Was I supposed to let her fall and possibly break her neck?" He asks dryly.

He remembers feeling an instinctive panic, when he saw her begin to go down. Logically, he knew that she'd survive. She'd certainly faced much worse than falling down a 30 feet or so. But still, his heart had stopped beating for a few painful seconds before he caught her.

His feelings were confusing, but they were strong. Too strong. He really needed to leave the Leaf before he said or did something foolish.

"Well no! Of course not! It was more what happened after that. You held her a lot longer than was necessary and she didn't try to get out of your arms either." The blonde reasons.

"I didn't realize there was a time limit for how long it is considered socially acceptable to hold someone after you save them from breaking their neck." The red head mutters.

Naruto raises an eyebrow. Gaara sounded a little defensive there. Yeah, something was definitely going on and he was going to figure out what. Believe it!

"Alright. But what about your patching her up after our fight?" Naruto asks. "It was a friendly match. Neither of us was seriously trying to injure each other. She's a Leaf Villager. The Leaf is an ally of the Sand. Of course I am going to tend to a comrade's injuries." The red head replies.

"Uh huh. What about the _like fine ivory_ comment? I mean at first I didn't get it. But now I know you were talking about her skin. People aren't that descriptive unless they like someone!" He continues.

Gaara sighs. He didn't like _lying_ to his first and best friend. But honestly, what was he supposed to say? He couldn't even articulate what he felt to himself, let alone to another person.

"If you ever look at ivory and then at her skin, you will see it is the exact same shade. That is all that I meant. It's no different than commenting that your eyes are sapphire blue." The red head defends himself.

"Alright. I guess I was reading too much into it. I mean it's not like you'd actually like Suki. You aren't that masochistic." His friend observes.

He raises an eyebrow. The red head felt like he should be offended by that. Was Naruto trying to imply that he was weaker than the Uchiha?

"I didn't mean it that way. It's just that Suki's never really been good at the whole sharing her feelings thing. We have always communicated more with our fists than anything else. You know what I mean?" He asks nervously.

"I think I understand. You are a good friend. You were just curious about my personal life, as any good friend would be. But I regret to inform you that I have nothing interesting to tell you." Gaara says as they arrive at his hotel room.

"Yeah. I kinda went a little crazy there. Night, Gaara." Naruto says cheerfully and heads off, leaving the conflicted Kazekage alone with his thoughts.

Meanwhile back in the Uchiha District, Suki finishes the dishes. Sighing, she heads to her room. She looks at herself in the vanity by her bed. The cuts were shallow. They'd likely heal in a day or two at most.

If she had Naruto's healing abilities, they most likely would already be gone. Damn that loser. He was so lucky to have the vitality of the Uzumaki Clan AND the Nine Tails to speed up his healing process. If he didn't, Suki was positive he would have been dead ten times over by now.

 _"Uchiha, don't make me use the handcuffs again. Stop being a difficult patient."_ She shivers, remembering Gaara's words.

Well perhaps it wasn't the words themselves that were having an impact on her. It was more the way he said it. Most people treated her with a mixture of awe and terror these days, with Naruto and Kakashi being the main exceptions. Gaara had actually tried to boss her around.

"I seriously need help." She mutters to herself.

She supposed it was likely because he was a Kage. Gaara was used to being in charge. He'd been Kazekage since he became a teenager.

Issuing orders was probably second nature to him. But there was still something almost…erotic about it? She blamed the fact that he had mentioned handcuffs on THAT thought. Nothing else in that command had been even vaguely sexual in nature.

"It's just because of the handcuffs and the fact that he was talking abot that book. It doesn't mean anything." She says to herself.

Suki had lived alone most of her life. Even when she was at the Sound, Orochimaru had given the Uchiha her own room. Sometimes the silence could be so loud that the only way to break it was by talking to herself.

Idly she mused this probably wasn't a healthy habit. People would probably think she was crazy if they walked in on her. But who was going to walk in on her? The only person crazy enough to come to her District was Naruto and apparently Gaara could be persuaded to tag along for the ride.

 _"Forgive me if I don't want to scar your pretty skin over a friendly training session."_ His words replayed in her mind.

If it had been anyone else, she might have thought he was being sarcastic or hitting on her. But this was Gaara. He didn't really seem to do sarcasm. Sarcasm was more vicious than the dry sense of humor that he would occasionally display. She quickly dismisses that was a possibility.

He couldn't be hitting on her either. He was a Kage. Gaara was smart enough to know that pursing her was likely the dumbest political move he could ever make. And that was assuming he was even interested, which she highly doubted was the case.

"He couldn't be." She murmurs.

 _"To quote you, I didn't mean it THAT way. I am merely saying from an aesthetic perspective it is quite pleasant to look at. It looks like fine ivory."_ She remembers him saying.

"He wasn't flirting." She mutters and settles into her bed, soon falling asleep.

The next day, she did something stupid. She went outside of her District. Suki went to a bar. The brunette had decided that her cuts had healed enough that it was unlikely anyone was going to notice or if they did, they wouldn't be dumb enough to comment on them anyway. Besides, she really need a drink.

Suki was not a heavy drinker. Calling her a social drinker would be a stretch as she didn't socialize when she drank. Rarely did she indulge herself with anything alcoholic, unless she was having a bad day.

Today that was most certainly the case. Everywhere she went she saw families and happy couples. It was as if after the war everyone had decided it was time to pair off and start families.

"Your strongest sake, please." Suki says to the bartender who nods and quickly pours her a glass.

Thankfully, no one in the Rookie Nine had gotten married yet. No one had had a child yet either. But she knew that was likely only a matter of time. Nearly everyone was romantically involved with someone.

She chuckles as she remembers that Hinata and Naruto were finally together. My God, that blonde was fucking oblivious. How he hadn't noticed the Hyuga Heiress was in love with him before, she had no idea. She wished Hinata all the luck in the world, she was going to need it to deal with Naruto.

"What's so funny, beautiful?" Suki hears someone asks and raises an eyebrow as she turns around to face whoever had addressed her.

She vaguely recognized this man. He was a Jonin. Suki estimated him to be about six feet tall which meant he dwarfed her 5'6 considerably. He had long brown silky hair and dark green eyes. His build was medium and his skin was fair. She guessed him to be in his late 20's. By most people's standards, he'd be considered attractive.

He had guts. Suki would give him that much. Most people would be far too terrified to even looked at her directly, much less actually talk to her. So she decides to humor him.

"I was just thinking about how long it took Naruto to notice that Hinata was in love with him. He truly is oblivious in some ways." She answers him and sips her drink.

"Yeah. I have to admit, that was funny as Hell. What about you? You don't strike me as the oblivious type." He asks and places his hand on her thigh.

She makes a quiet sound of amusement. It wasn't loud enough to be considered a snort. But he had definitely heard it.

"Still laughing at the blonde?" He inquires.

"No. I'm laughing at you. Get your hand off of me, if you want to keep it. I decided to talk to you because you were brave enough to address me first. But that doesn't mean I'm going home with you or that I'm going to let you touch me." She states firmly and turns her attention back to her drink.

Suki in her mind, had firmly shot him down. The brunette thought that she had been fairly polite. Well polite by her standards. She knew most people would have thought she had been somewhat rude. But she didn't care.

"Well I guess it's expected you'd play hard to get. I'll never understand Naruto. He spends years chasing your fine ass and then when he catches you, he goes for the pretty wallflower. You have a Clan to restore, don't you? I'd be happy to lend a hand." He continues and Suki notes this man did not suffer from a lack of self-confidence.

He did suffer from stupidity though. Did he not realize that he had been dismissed? Why the fuck was his hand still on her?

"Look, I'll ask this again one more time nicely. Move your hand and leave me alone, or I'll have to do it for you. And trust me when I say, you wouldn't like that." The brunette informs him.

"Oh come on. We all know that you are on a pretty short leash. If you even tried it, Naruto would be here so fast, heads would spin. You're a tigress that has been declawed. But that doesn't mean you can't have some fun. So what do you say?" He asks.

Elsewhere in the Leaf Village, Gaara had woken up. He decided to explore more of his friend's home. He wandered into a bar and was surprised to see Suki at a bar this early in the morning. Curious, he watches her.

It didn't take long for a man to approach her. At first, they appeared to be talking and the Uchiha didn't seem upset. As the conversation war off though, he saw that she was getting at best annoyed and at worst, outright angry. He knew it was wrong to eavesdrop, but he did it anyway.

 _"No. I'm laughing at you. Get your hand off of me, if you want to keep it. I decided to talk to you because you were brave enough to address me first. But that doesn't mean I'm going home with you or that I'm going to let you touch me."_ Gaara hears Suki say and he couldn't help but smirk at her…feisty answer.

 _"Well I guess it's expected you'd play hard to get. I'll never understand Naruto. He spends years chasing your fine ass and then when he catches you, he goes for the pretty wallflower. You have a Clan to restore, don't you? I'd be happy to lend a hand."_ The man replies and Gaara's smirk disappeared, he didn't care for anyone speaking to the Uchiha in that manner.

Somewhere in the back of his mind, he realized that he was jealous. His sand was actually starting to stir. The red head was tempted to let his sand teach the other man some manners. But he held back. He didn't want to cause an international incident over some frisky drunk at a bar. He knew that the Suki could handle herself.

The brunette continued to shoot the Jonin down. But he wasn't taking no for an answer. Gaara saw red at that declawed tigress comment. This man clearly wanted to die an early and most painful death.

"I believe she has told you repeatedly that she is not interested." Gaara says as he strides over to the pair.

"You're the Kazekage!" He exclaims.

Gaara nods. Sometimes there were perks to being a Kage. One of them meant you were easily recognizable to most people as someone they didn't want to piss off. Unfortunately for him, the Leaf Villager had definitely pissed off Gaara.

"Yes, I am. You're smart enough to realize that the Uchiha can't exactly deliver you the beating that you deserve. This is due to her…shall we say probation? So you thought you could take advantage of that fact and continue with your advances, long after she made it perfectly clear that she didn't desire your attention. In the Sand, our women do not have to endure such things. Our men are smart enough to take no for an answer the first time." He states and the sand forms a hand.

"L-ord Kazekage, please stop. I'll let her be. I promise. This is all just a misunderstanding." He says.

Suki blinks and watches. Was Gaara actually defending her against the idiot? She winces when the sand punches the other man and sends him flying into the wall. Oh yes, he was definitely defending her.

"No. There is no misunderstanding. The woman said no and you persisted. You are fortunate that is a Leaf headband you are wearing and not a Sand one. I would have you stripped of your Jonin status and made a Chunin again. Perhaps I should speak to Naruto about doing exactly that to you." He muses and the other man runs off.

"Uchiha, are you alright?" Gaara asks and she nods her head.

"Yeah. I'm fine. I could have handled that. But thank you." She says.

"He deserved worse. Is he the only man who has tried to use your probationary status against you?" The red head asks.

Suki tilts her head to the side. She wondered if she told Gaara that he wasn't, if the red head would actually hunt down the other men. The brunette decides not to find out.

"It doesn't matter. I didn't know you were a drinker. What are you doing in a bar this early?" She asks.

"I'm not Naruto. I'm not that easily distracted. I'll take that as a yes. I'm not normally. I was just exploring the village more. It's a good thing that I was though. I'll have to talk to Naruto about this." The Kazekage says.

Suki raises an eyebrow at Gaara. Oh hell no. He was NOT going to treat her like she was some damsel in distress. She could handle a few frisky drunks. The last Uchiha did not need Gaara to have Naruto come rushing in to play the Knight in Shining Armor.

"Gaara, I can handle it. Thanks, but this is my business." She mutters.

"Uchiha, stop being such a difficult patient." He mutters.

"I'll stop being such a difficult patient when you stop being such a difficult Kage!" She says and Gaara chuckles.

"Very well. We'll both stop being difficult then. For the moment, I'll let this matter drop. But if I see another man harassing you in that way, I am going to speak with Naruto about it." He says.

"Alright. Deal." Suki concedes and orders Gaara a drink.


	3. Chapter 3

We're the Same

 **Author's Note:** Thanks for the reviews. Hmm not much to say, other than I hope you like this chapter. Now on with the story.

 **Chapter Notation:** Drink responsibly.

Chapter Three

Somehow one drink became two, which became three. Gaara had lost count somewhere around five or six. He was just sober enough to realize that he was intoxicated. But too drunk to care.

"So we all got together and tried to steal Kakashi's mask. We did manage it in the end, only to find out there was another mask underneath." She finishes the story with a giggle.

That's how the red head knew that Suki was just as intoxicated as he was. He never would have imagined that the Uchiha knew the word giggle, much less was capable of doing it. He decided he quite liked the sound and was rather determined to get her to do it again.

"I really never understood why he wears it. I can see the scar from the Sharingan transplant, but it really doesn't look like it was disfiguring. Perhaps he has bad teeth?" He suggests.

"I wondered that or maybe fish lips. I guess we'll never know though." She says with a sigh and takes another sip of her drink.

Gaara chuckles. He hadn't expected the phrase fish lips to be in her vocabulary either. He offers her his hand, as he gets up. He was just coherent enough to realize that if they kept drinking they were probably going to pass out and that wouldn't end well.

"I suppose not. Come. I'll walk you home. You are in no state to walk the streets alone." He says.

"As if you are any more sober than I am." Suki replies and hiccups cutely, causing Gaara to shake his head as he pays for his portion of the bill.

He offered to pay for hers. But Suki was a stubborn creature. Very independent. It seemed she truly hated to "owe" anyone, anything. Even if that was just a few drinks. So she paid her share of the tab and allowed Gaara to escort her off.

"I admit that I've probably had at least three drinks more than I should have, but I imagine together we'll somehow manage to get you back to your home in one piece." He states.

"Oh yes, it will be a perilous mission. Even more dangerous than the war." The sultry brunette replies in a sassy fashion.

"Undoubtedly." Gaara dryly agrees and leads her back to the Uchiha District and to her house.

He has the sand open the door for them. The red head was supporting Suki too much to do so himself. The Uchiha was too far gone to be able to walk straight it seemed. Gaara was really glad he had the foresight to walk her home, he wasn't sure she wouldn't have toppled over otherwise.

He somehow gets them to the couch. The sand closes the door behind the tipsy pair of ninjas. Not three minutes later, he heard a loud BOOM of thunder off in the distance. They got inside just before it had started to pour. Gaara had never seen so much rain in all of his life.

"Looks like we made it just in time." Suki mumbles and lays on the couch, seemingly unaware of the show she was giving the Kazekage.

Her white shirt had ridden up just enough that he could see her toned stomach. The way she was laying on her side didn't help matters. It just accentuated every curve and made the top of her shirt slide down slightly to expose just a hint of her creamy, ample cleavage which was apparently covered by what he guessed was a red silk bra.

It was at that moment, that Gaara suddenly understood something. He had never really given the topic of lust or sexual desire in general much thought. Certainly, he had read a few erotic passages here and there that had stirred his _interest._ But it was never something that had CONSUMED him before. He blamed the alcohol because the way his body was responding to the sight of her just laying on the couch was not normal. (At least he didn't think it was.)

"Would you mind not telling Naruto how drunk we got? He'd never let me hear the end of it." Suki murmurs and stretches out like a cat, which was only making a certain problem worse for the Kazekage.

"I won't tell him, if you don't." He agrees.

"Mmm thanks." She says and closes her eyes, seeming to almost snuggle into the couch.

Suki just felt really relaxed. It was though every muscle in her body was humming with a pleasant tingling sensation and all the tension had just drifted out of her. The couch was really comfortable, she noted. Maybe she'd just shut her eyes for a few minutes.

A few minutes later, Gaara blinks. Suki's breathing had completely evened out and her eyes were shut. She had fallen asleep. He chuckles at the irony. Possibly the most feared woman of their generation had lost the battle to alcohol.

He ambles off into one of the rooms. The red head grabs a couple pillows and blankets. There was really no reason to have her be cold or wake up with a stiff neck.

The next day, Suki wakes up and stretches. She was surprised when her foot touched something warm. She blinks and looks down.

"Gaara?" She asks as she noticed the red head had apparently slept on the floor, at the foot of the couch.

"It seemed rude to sleep in a bedroom without asking first." He explains as his eyes flutter open.

"You have to be the most respectful Kage that I've ever met. Next time, it's fine. You can sleep in a bed." She informs him and gets off the couch, offering him her hand.

Gaara takes it. He was surprised. She had said next time. That implied she expected him to visit her and stay the night again. Maybe it had just been a slip of the tongue though.

"I'll remember that. I am curious about something. You don't have to answer if you don't want to, of course." He says.

"Alright. What is it?" Suki says as she pours herself a glass of water.

"That man did raise a valid point. You have always said that it was your intention to restore your Clan, but you don't even have a lover." He observes.

Suki raises an eyebrow. She was surprised that Gaara would ask THAT. She pawned it off to genuine curiosity and the alcohol talking. She shrugs and decides it was harmless to answer his question.

"What makes you think that I don't have a lover?" She responds in a cocky fashion.

"If you had a lover and he allowed another man to sleep in the same room as you, he is clearly a sorry excuse for one." He replies.

"Fair point. I do want to restore my Clan. There's just no one in this village that I want to restore it with." She answers simply and offers him a glass of water, which he takes.

"Does that mean you will do what Temari did and marry outside your village?" He asks.

She tilts her head as if considering her question. Gaara got the impression she had never really seriously thought about this possibility before. Frowning, she takes another sip of her water and then answers.

"It might come to that. There's no one here that has what I want in a lover." She replies.

The Kazekage knew he was playing with fire here. But the alcohol seemed to have loosened her tongue and he was curious.

"And what do you want?" He asks.

"You know you are the first person who has ever asked me that." She muses.

It was true. No one else had ever asked her what she wanted. It was just assumed when she was a small child she'd either join the Uchiha Police Force or be a housewife like her mother. When she left the Leaf to get her revenge, the Leaf had come after her. They hadn't cared what she wanted. They wanted her back in the Leaf. And once they realized she wasn't coming back willingly, they labeled her a criminal.

After the war, no one had asked if she wanted to go back to living in the Leaf. No one had asked if she wanted to live in the Uchiha District again. The District where her family had been slaughtered and where every night, she walked past her brother's old room. The only person who loved her for who she WAS and not who they WANTED her to be. Nobody had bothered to ask if she wanted any of that, not even Naruto.

"I'm the first person to ask you what?" Gaara asks in confusion.

Everyone knew that she wanted to restore her Clan. But that Jonin hadn't been atypical. He was very typical in the Leaf Village. If the men weren't terrified of her, they just assumed she'd be eager to take their offers to "help" her. They never bothered to consider the possibility she wouldn't be interested.

"To ask me what I wanted. Not even Naruto asked me that." She replies and without thinking about it, she pushes him onto the couch and straddled his lap, wrapping her arms around his neck.

"That is incredibly sad." He comments and blinks, shocked that she was sitting in his lap.

The red head tries to adjust their position. This could get very awkward and soon. If he got aroused by the feeling of her being this close to him, he expected she'd try to Chidori him in the face. And honestly, he wasn't eager to test his sand's reaction time at this close a range.

"Maybe a little. But most of them don't view me as a person. It's not different than how your village viewed you as a child or how the Leaf looked at Naruto. You were both just weapons. That's how they look at me now." She says.

"You aren't just a weapon. No one is. People are just made to feel that way." Gaara tells her.

Suki couldn't help but smile. It seemed a bit of Naruto's naïve optimism had rubbed off on the Kazekage. It was cute.

"But as for what I want, I suppose there really isn't anything particularly outrageous in my wish list. He'd have to be strong. Naturally, another ninja. Civilians hold no appeal to me." She begins.

"I feel the same way. I'd be worried about breaking a civilian." He admits.

He knew that Suki would be one of the few people who would take that statement at face value. Most people would be horrified. Others would try to convince him that was a silly fear. He wouldn't break his lover. But it was a very real concern on his part. His sand just acted instinctively and he didn't really know how to be gentle.

"I know what you mean. Intelligence is another thing. I want someone that I can hold an actual conversation with." She continues, seeming perfectly content to stay on his lap for the moment.

Gaara nods. So far it wasn't anything unexpected. Almost any ninja would have listed strength and intelligence as desired qualities in a lover. (He imagined most civilians also would have as well.)

"He'd have to want children and not mind taking my last name. Loyalty is important to me." She continues.

Suki didn't know why she was telling the Kazekage these things. She blamed the alcohol. But Gaara was a good listener. She didn't see any judgment in her eyes. If she had tried to have this conversation with anyone else, they would have interrupted her or judged her. Maybe that was why she was being unusually talkative, she muses.

"While the name issue may be enough to dissuade some men. I am still at a loss for why you can't find one man in the Leaf who meets your very vague criteria." Gaara states with some amusement.

"Well there is one more thing. I want someone who isn't afraid of me. Someone who is strong enough to throw me against a wall and we can make love until we both pass out from exhaustion." She whispers into his ear.

Gaara swallows hard. Yes, it was definitely time to get the Uchiha off his lap before she noticed something. He gently pushes her off.

"Well still I'm sure you shouldn't have any problem finding someone who is willing to do that last part." He says.

"I can't believe I said that." She mutters and looks away from him, clearly embarrassed.

"I can't believe that I got intoxicated with a woman who attacked a Kage Summit. So that makes us even." He reassures her.

Suki couldn't help but laugh at that response. He did have a point there. If she was in his position, she wouldn't have gone anywhere near him. It did seem to violate common sense.

"I guess that's true. Will you be returning to the Sand soon?" She asks.

"Yes. I'm leaving later today after I finalize a few things with the Hokage." He replies and Suki nods.

She didn't know why that upset her. But she ignores it. They might be friends now, but he was still the Kazekage. He had responsibilities. Unlike Naruto, he actually did do the less glamorous aspects of the job without being forced into it.

"I guess I'll see you around. Naruto is probably looking for you by now and I have to some grocery shopping anyway." She says.

"I have a hard time picturing you doing something as domestic as shopping." He states with no small amount of amusement.

"Even I have to eat." She says, grabs some money, and heads off.

Gaara watches her leave. Yes, he decided he knew what he felt for her. Definitely a very strong case of lust. He felt better now that he had a name for this pull she had on him. Lust could be ignored.

Of course her little wall comment hadn't been helpful in ignoring it. He never expected her to have a submissive streak. She had high standards. So perhaps it wasn't surprising that she had set an almost impossibly high bar. Almost no man would be foolish enough to try to "overpower" her in such a way.

"SUKI!" The brunette hears someone call out.

She blinks and turns around. It was Sakura. Uh oh. She knew what was going on now. She would bet her life that somehow Ino had heard about her drinking session with the Kazekage. The blonde woman would naturally tell Sakura. And Sakura would do the interrogating. Damn it. This was going to be so fucking annoying.

"Hey, Sakura." She says.

"Where you heading?" She asks as she trots over to her teammate's side.

"Shopping. Running low on food." The brunette says with a shrug.

"Great! I'll go with you." The pink haired woman says and Suki gives her look like, _"Oh really?"_

Sakura was used to Suki's looks by now. She knew that after the war the last Uchiha was more bark than bite when it came to her interactions with Team Seven. So she wasn't going to back down that easily.

"Try not to be annoying." She mutters when she sees the determination in the other ninja's eyes as she heads to the store.

"Some things never change." Sakura mutters.

Suki had always kept people at an arm's length and that was being generous. Even before she left the Leaf to go train with Orochimaru, she had never been that close to Sakura. Despite her best efforts, her female teammate had at best rebuffed her offers of friendship and invitations to engage in a little female bonding.

Talking about boys? No, not going to happen. Shopping together? Hadn't happened until today. Doing each other's hair and makeup, nope. (Not that Suki wore makeup, but it was the principle of the thing.)

"Mhm. You are still annoying. So what did you really want? I doubt you just wanted to go shopping." Suki says as she examines some tomatoes.

"Well um do you know what is going around the village?" She asks nervously, not at all sure how her teammate was going to take this news.

"That I got drunk with Gaara? I did." She says with a shrug.

"Well yeah. But do you know about the OTHER part?" Sakura inquires anxiously.

Suki raises an eyebrow. What other part? Wait did she even want to know? God only knows what crazy story the rest of the Leaf came up with.

"What other part?" She asks.

"The rumor going around is saying that some guy hit on you and that Gaara stepped in." She answers.

That part was true. She hadn't needed Gaara to play the Knight in Shining Armor, but it had been nice that he had. Well that was slightly embarrassing. She didn't need the other Leaf Villagers to think the Kazekage was fighting her battles.

"Also true. So?" The brunette asks cautiously, not sure if she really wanted to know what else was being said.

"And that you both left together. So naturally people think that you and Gaara are…" She trails off because it was rather clear what she was implying.

Suki blinks. Wait, the Leaf Village thought she and Gaara were lovers? Had they met Gaara? He was the most professional Kage she'd ever met. Becoming her lover would be anything but professional. It would be courting political disaster.

"They don't seriously think that Gaara and I are together, do they? Please tell me they aren't that stupid." She mutters.

"Alright. I won't tell you. But I won't deny it either." The medic replies and Suki curses rather colorfully under her breath.

Gaara had been being nice. He had stepped in and helped her deal with the pervert. That was all. He didn't need the grief that this rumor would cause him. No good deed went unpunished, it seemed.

"And if I denied it, that would probably just make it worse." The last Uchiha muses.

"More than likely. So what really happened?" Sakura inquires curiously, eager to find out more about her elusive teammate's private life.

"Exactly what you said. Some guy came onto me. He knew I couldn't fight him because of my current situation. He wouldn't knock it off. Gaara stepped in. We had a few drinks. Alright, a lot of drinks. Gaara walked me home because he knew that I had too much. We talked for a bit…and that's about it." Suki says.

"You hesitated." Sakura says.

"Huh?" Suki asks and she places some tomatoes into her basket as she looks at some other produce.

Sakura raises an eyebrow. Was the brunette really going to try to pretend she didn't know what Sakura was talking about? They both knew that wasn't the case.

"You hesitated. You said that's about it. That means something more happened." She insists.

"Sakura, what do you want me to say that I'm having some sort of secret relationship with Gaara and that I'm pregnant with his lovechild?" Suki mutters sarcastically.

"Suki, that's not anything to joke about. Besides, you know drinking while you are pregnant is bad for the baby." She replies and begins to go into medic mode.

Suki smacks her forehead with her hand. She couldn't believe this. How could Sakura be so intelligent academically and so dumb when it came to sarcasm? Honestly, why couldn't she have gotten at least one normal teammate?

"You know that I'm not pregnant with his child. Yes, I know that. I was being sarcastic. I really shouldn't have to explain that to you." She growls in annoyance.

"Oh I know you aren't involved with him. I'm just saying, now the rumor is going around. And you know how quickly stuff like that goes around. This could get really awkward and fast." The pink haired woman says.

Suki sighs. Yes, she knew that other ninja was right. This was the sort of thing that could spiral out of control very quickly. She had to nip this in the bud somehow. Gaara didn't deserve to have to deal with this garbage.

"Alright. So what do you suggest I do?" The brunette inquires.

"Well the easiest thing to do would be to get a boyfriend. Then it will die down really quick! But you're you. So you probably won't do that." The green eyed woman muses.

"I'm not getting a lover just to make a rumor die down. That wouldn't be right. Besides, there's no one in this village that I can imagine wanted to fu-" Suki is suddenly cut off when Sakura places her hand over the last Uchiha's mouth.

"Suki! Watch your language! We are in a grocery store. Children might hear you talk like that!" She chides them.

Suki gives Sakura a look. The look quite clearly said, _"If you don't remove your hand, I'm going to bite you. Stop being stupid."_ Thankfully, Sakura did indeed remove her hand.

"We live in a ninja village. Foul language is the last thing their parents should be worried about. But thanks for letting me know. I guess I should probably go and warn Gaara." She says with a heavy sigh, paying for her purchases.

Meanwhile Gaara had wrapped up his business in the Leaf. He starts the long trek back to the Sand. He glances back at the other village as he did so.

He was smart enough to realize that he shouldn't go there. Some distance would do him a world of good. He might be attracted to her, but that didn't mean it was mutual.

"And I really don't need to make Naruto more suspicious than he already is. There's nothing to be suspicious of." He mutters as he braces himself, knowing that this was the season when the desert Sun was at it's most punishing.

All they had done was train, have a few drinks, and talk. Yes, he had stayed the night. But nothing had happened.

Now that he had more time to analyze her response, that wasn't helping matters either. She had said _make love_ until we pass out. She hadn't said have sex, screw, fuck, or anything else. She had very specifically said make love. Deep down, Suki was a romantic.

He hadn't anticipated that. Gaara had always pictured her as more of a tigress. When she went into heat, she'd find a suitable male and just start producing cubs. That phrase spoke volumes. She actually wanted a real relationship.

"Clearly, the alcohol is still having an effect on me." He mutters.

That was the only logical reason why he would be having these thoughts. He was a rational person. Anyone with any common sense knew that pursuing Suki was playing with fire, but this was especially so for a Kage.

So why couldn't get her out of his mind? The sound of her giggle. The way she looked stretched out on that couch. Or particularly the way she felt when she was sitting in his lap.

He hoped that reason would return to him once there was some distance between them. Little did he know that by the time he arrived in the Sand Village, he would be greeted by complete chaos.


	4. Chapter 4

We're the Same

Author's Note: Thanks for the reviews. Oh and if you are interested, feel free to check out _**The Color Red**_ and _**Just Like Fire**_ which are also Sasuke x Gaara stories, but with Gaara as the female. Anyway, I hope you guys enjoy this chapter.

 **Chapter Notation:** I don't know what is going on. It lists four chapters, but is only showing three. So I'm reposting this. Please let me know if you can see it.

Chapter Four

"What is going on here?!" Gaara demands seeing so many of his villagers yelling at each other and in some cases actually attacking one another.

"Oh Lord Kazekage, thank goodness you are back. You can put this matter to rest." Baki says as he approaches the red head.

Gaara raises an eyebrow. He wanted to know what matter he was supposed to put to rest? What could have caused his normally very quiet village to erupt into something that resembled a drunken barroom brawl scene.

"There have been certain rumors that have made their way to the Sand very recently. It's caused quite a…vigorous debate amongst our citizens." Baki begins awkwardly, clearly feeling uncomfortable about the subject at hand.

"And what are they "debating" about with their fists?" The Kazekage demands to know in a no nonsense voice.

"Two things. The first is whether you and Suki Uchih are actually lovers. The second is, presuming that is true whether that is a good thing or not for this village." He replies and braces himself for the eruption that he knew was sure to follow.

Gaara blinks. What the Hell? How could they possibly know that he was even attracted to her? He had just realized it himself. It was just an animal attraction though.

It was no different than when he once saw a pair of lions mating while traveling. He wasn't stupid enough to act on it. The red head certainly didn't expect her to return his "feelings." So how had the village found out?

"And why are the under the impression that I might be romantically involved with the Uchiha?" He asks and tries his best to keep his tone neutral, but on the inside his heart was pounding.

If his villages were willing to fight about this in the streets, there was no reason to think word wouldn't eventually get back to the Leaf. He gingerly touched his shoulder, where the scar still remained from all those years ago. The scar she'd given him when her Chidori pierced through his sand. It was not an experience he was eager to repeat.

"Apparently, you were seen drinking with Suki Uchiha at a bar. Some man according to various sources made advances towards her. You stopped him. You two left together and you were seen leaving her District the following morning." Baki explains.

"We happened to be in the same bar. I saw no reason not to drink with her. A man wouldn't take no for an answer. As a Kage, I find such behavior deplorable. This man was aware that Suki couldn't reject his advances in the way she wanted because of her semi probationary status. She was heavily intoxicated. I made sure that she made it home safely. When we got there, it started to rain fiercely. So I stayed the night and left in the morning. We did not share a bed." He says.

Baki sighs in relief. He had hoped that it would be something like that. It was going to take awhile to calm down the rest of the villagers, but at least now the truth would get out there. He sincerely hoped it got out there, before the rumors spread.

The experienced ninja couldn't suppress a shiver of fear at what might happen otherwise. The Uchiha was one of the strongest ninjas alive. She was also known for her temper. Blood would definitely be spilt if she found out that people were speculating on her sex life.

"I am very relieved to hear that. Perhaps you might want to make an announcement of some sort?" He suggests.

Gaara raises an eyebrow. He was expected to put out a bulletin over whether or not he was sleeping with the Uchiha? This was ridiculous. Honestly, when did his village become populated by so many overgrown nosey children?

"If it will…soothe tensions, I shall do so. I am not pleased that such a step is necessary though. I had thought the Sand's ninjas were more professional than this. They all just jumped to conclusions about my private life. They should know better." He states and heads to the village square.

Suddenly all eyes were on the Kazekage. He shakes his head in disbelief. He couldn't believe he had to do this.

"As you can see, I have returned from the Leaf. I am rather disappointed that you would all jump to conclusions based on a rumor. I assure you that if I was involved in a relationship that might have any impact on the security of the Sand, I would inform all of you. I would appreciate it, if you would respect my privacy and cease speculating on my personal life." He states in annoyance and the sand flickers around him in a way that mirrored his agitation.

"Yes, Lord Kazekage!" They all say in unison.

"Good. It's good to be home." He says and heads back to the Kazekage Tower.

Meanwhile Suki returns to her home. She couldn't believe what had happened. It was likely that half the village thought she was the Kazekage's lover.

That thought should have bothered her more than it did. Gaara had tried to kill her when she was a Genin. She had been willing to kill him at the Kage Summit. That was hardly a "normal" foundation upon which to build a relationship.

There were still other concerns. She was aware that through no fault of his own, he was at best a beginner when it came to personal relationships. His past meant he was just as emotionally littered with scars as she was, just in a different way. There were at least a million reasons why it would be a bad idea.

"It doesn't though." She mutters and finds herself feeling more than a little disturbed at that fact.

She was more worried about what would be thrown his way because of the rumor than anything else. She was a former S Class Criminal Ninja. She had attacked the Kage Summit. Suki had betrayed her village once.

She didn't delude herself. By most people's standards, she was _the bad girl._ Gaara used to be the _bad boy,_ but now was the _angel._ Some people might think that it was romantic. That somehow he was "fixing her." Some might pat Gaara on the back for landing an Uchiha or a hot lover in general. Most though would probably suspect she had put him under a Genjutsu or that he was being led around by his dick. Even if you ignored what it could do to his reputation, the political implications were enormous.

"Maybe a hot shower will help." She mumbles as she heads to her bathroom.

She turns on the water, adjusts the temperature, strips, and gets in. There was nothing like a hot shower to wash away all your troubles. All she had to do was to write Gaara a vague letter, that he would understand. Give him some warning about the rumor mill that was surely going to go into overdrive.

She suspected the Sand was a more "professional" village than the Leaf. Maybe they didn't gossip as much. He might get off relatively easy. And that is where her thoughts all went down hill. She shouldn't have thought of the phrase, _Get off._

 _"Well I'm sure you shouldn't have any problem finding someone who is willing to do that last part."_ She remembers him saying.

How could she have been THAT stupid? Why had she told him her romantic wish list? Granted most of it was composed of things that almost anyone would have wanted, but still.

Certainly, it wasn't unusual to desire someone who was strong, loyal, and intelligent. Desiring a family was perfectly normal as well. Maybe wanting to keep her last name was somewhat strange, but it was expected. She was the last of her clan.

It was all pretty standard. That was until the last part. Why had she confessed that part about wanting to be thrown up against the wall and ravished by her lover? God, she had been so stupid. She blamed it on the alcohol. Normally, she was smarter than that!

 _"I never figured you for a romantic."_ His words came back to her.

If it had been anyone else, she would have thought he was flirting with her. The comments about the book, catching her, chasing off the frisky drunk, and calling her skin, _pretty._ (Which while a bit odd, was still clearly a compliment.)

It wasn't though. This was Gaara. The red head didn't flirt. He probably didn't know what that was, let alone how to do it. Suki knew that it had all been innocent.  
"Get it together, Uchiha." She mutters.

Elsewhere in the Leaf, Sakura goes to find Naruto. She knew something was going on. Suki had been protesting just a little bit too much. If anyone knew what was going on with the brunette, it would be Naruto.

"Naruto?" She asks when she knocks on his door and sighs in relief when he opens it and looks at her in confusion.

"Oh hey, Sakura. What are you doing here at this hour?" The blonde asks and the pink haired woman quickly darts past him into his home.

She wasn't going to take no for an answer. This was Suki after all. She was still their teammate. And the medic was going to do whatever she could to help the sullen youth be happy for once.

"Whoa. You are pretty pushy today. What's up?" The blue eyed ninja asks and cocks his head to the side curiously.

"It's about Suki. Did you hear what happened at the bar?" The green eyed woman asks.

"Yeah. I heard. I think people are making a bigger deal out of it than it was. I really don't think Gaara would be interested in someone who is as…vicious as Suki can be. And let's face it, she's always preferred being alone anyway." The blonde says.

Sakura shakes her head. Suki might act that way and even say she wanted to be alone. But she didn't believe it for a minute. A woman who spent most of her life trying to avenge her dead family, wasn't a natural loner. She'd just become that way.

"So you don't think he likes her then?" She asks.

"Well I guess he does. I mean as much as Gaara likes anyone. Though when he caught her, he did hold her longer than I think was really needed." Naruto says thoughtfully.

"Yeah. I think there's something there." Sakura says and Naruto tilts his head as if considering it.

Well. Gaara was Gaara. It would be hard to tell if he actually _liked_ anyone. Even if the red head understood what he was feeling, he probably wouldn't know how to express it.

This wasn't his fault. He just hadn't had a normal childhood to put it mildly. While other teenagers had been getting their first crushes, Gaara had been crushing people to death because he was the host to a bloodthirsty demon.

"Guess we could see about getting her sent on a mission to the Sand and see what happens." He offers.

"That's a great idea. I mean it'd be good anyway. If she can be trusted to conduct missions outside the village, maybe that will make it easier for some of the other villagers to accept that she's changed." The pink haired woman muses and the blonde nods.

It'd probably be good for Suki either way. She might not find true love in the Sand, but it'd get her out of the Leaf. Naruto knew that she was likely going stir crazy at being confined to the village for this long.

Suki had never explicitly said this, but the blue eyed ninja got the impression that she did enjoy traveling. She was like her hawk summon in that way. Only they had to clip her wings while everyone was assured that no, she wasn't going to become a female Madara. She should be able to fly again.

"Yeah. I'll see what I can do. We'll need to come up with a good excuse to send her to the Sand. It's a long journey. It has to be something believable." Naruto observes.

"Yeah. You're right. That's a week long trip, even if she only stays for one day. Hmm." Sakura says and the two begin brainstorming ideas.

A few days later, Suki heads to the Hokage's office. She expected to get guard duty again or something equally boring. The brunette hadn't expected to get a miss that would take her to the Sand Village.

"Yes, so the Sand wishes to revise it's Academy curriculum. Therefore, we are going to send you. They are seeking our advice on the overhaul. It's a very important mission. This will likely take a few weeks or even a few months to complete." The Hokage tells her.

"Alright. But why are you sending me? I'm not an Academy teacher. Wouldn't it be better to send Iruka or someone who has actual experience working in the Academy?" The Uchiha woman asks.

The Hokage shakes his head. Damn. It seemed she was going to be difficult. He would have to come up with a good excuse.

"You are one of the strongest ninjas the Leaf has ever produced. You helped to play a critical war in ending the war. You came out of our Academy. You know what our lesson plans are like. It is a show of good trust to send someone like you to meet with them. It shows we value you their alliance." The Hokage replies.

"Alright, I'll go. I can't lie. I'm kinda happy about at chance to get out of the Leaf for awhile. Maybe the Sand Villagers will be less…well they don't have as much history to hold against me." She finishes awkwardly.

The Hokage nods. Suki goes and packs. The brunette makes sure to pack lots of suntan lotion. The Desert Sun was going to be absolute murder on her skin, otherwise. She tries to pack clothes that were suitable for the climate. But she had always been fond of darker colors. She might need to do some shopping when she got there.

"Lord Kazekage, the Uchiha has arrived." Baki informs Gaara three days later and the red head blinks.

"What?" He asks.

"The Uchiha has arrived. She's here to help assist in redesigning our Academy's lesson plans. Don't worry. I doubt she knows about the rumors. Our people know enough to keep their mouths shut. It was all a silly misunderstanding." Baki tries to assure him.

Gaara blinks again. Suki was in the Sand. She was here right now. That wasn't good. What if he said or did something foolish around her? He had been counting on the distance erasing his desire for her. But she was here. Damn it.

"Send her in." He says and somehow manages to maintain his composure outwardly.

The Kazekage blinks when Suki walks in. She was carrying a traveling pack on her back and some scrolls. Her attire was different than normal though. She wore her Leaf headband. But that was the only symbol of her affiliation with that village. The brunette was wearing a short sleeved white shirt and matching shorts.

He remembered she used to favor shorts when she was a Genin. But at some point had opted for pants. Now he wished, she hadn't changed her mind. The sight of her legs displayed like that was NOT helping him get over his attraction. The shorts also hugged her hips and the curve of her ass. Thank God for loose robes or this could have gotten humiliating very quickly.

"Welcome. I have to say I'm surprised that you were sent on this mission. I would have expected an Academy instructor." He greets her.

"That's what I said. But the Hokage said that it was a show of good faith or something to send me and that I was one of the strongest ninjas the Leaf had ever produced. I came out of our Academy so, I guess in a weird way I'm supposed to be a success story." She says with a shrug.

"And did all that flattery make you suspicious?" He inquires in an amused fashion.

"Very. But I wasn't going to argue with the chance to get out of the Leaf for awhile." She answers.

Gaara mentally sighs at that answer. He felt saddened by it. The Uchiha was trying to suffer in dignity, he supposed. But it was clear that she was miserable there.

The Leaf would never truly forgive her for everything. Naruto had. But everyone else…not so much. He knew how difficult it was to prove yourself after you finally pulled yourself out of that darkness. He didn't envy her at the moment.

"Uchiha, your face is red. Did you apply any suntan lotion before coming here?" He asks.

"Of course I did." She replies in a huff and looks down at her arms, noticing they were now mostly a rosy pink color.

"It wasn't a strong enough version then. Come here. I always keep some for visitors. Most people have this problem when they first visit the Sand." He states and pulls out a bottle.

Suki heads over. She goes to grab it. Gaara shakes his head though. He gestures for her to sit in his chair and she does, though she gives him a confused look.

"I'm used to applying it. It'll be more effective if I do it." He states simply and starts rubbing it into her face in a surprisingly gentle way.

"Alright." She says, shocking him with how cooperative she was being.

He nods. After awhile, he decides her face was suitably covered. He runs it along her arms. Suki couldn't help but shiver. She knew that he wasn't intentionally being seductive, but it felt good.

Gaara apparently wasn't shy. He had no issue coating her legs. He gets up and moves behind her. She felt him move her hair to the side and begin to cover her neck in the lotion.

"Nhh!" She cries out and squirms.

"Uchiha?" He asks in confusion.

"My ne-ck is just really sensitive. I think it's remnant of the curse mark Orochimaru give me." She mutters and tries to hide her embarrassment.

Gaara's eyes narrowed. It occurred to him that she might be correct. Certainly, it was possible that the curse mark had lingering minor effects. But he didn't think they were accidental.

"It wouldn't surprise me in the slightest, if that was the case and it was intentionally so." He practically growls and Suki noticed that his hands gripped her neck tighter.

Gaara wasn't holding her tight enough for it to hurt. But it was certainly noticeable. She saw that his sand was swirling around him in agitation. It vaguely reminded her of what an angry ally cat would do if it saw a dog that came to close.

"I wouldn't put it past him. But it doesn't matter anymore." She says with a shrug.

"It wouldn't surprise me if that sick pervert made the skin on your neck more receptive because he was intending to…do things to you." He growls.

Yes, that was definitely a growl. She shivers. It was so animalistic. She wasn't frightened. One thing was for sure though, Suki had never been more grateful NOT to have been Orochimaru than at that moment.

"Honestly, it wouldn't have shocked me either. But I'm here now. So it doesn't really matter. I should probably find a place to stay the night. Mostly I just wanted to check in." She states as she gets off the chair.

"We have apartments for all ninjas from other nations who are here on diplomatic work." He informs her.

Suki blinks. That surprised her. Well this was Gaara. Apparently he was firm believer in being prepared. So maybe it shouldn't have.

"Alright. Where can I find mine?" She asks.

Gaara takes her by the hand. He teleports her to the middle of the village. There was a section of apartments there.

She glances at them curiously. They had been built in the old fashioned way. It was clear they were made from earth clay found beneath the sand and had been allowed to harden. This made for surprisingly sturdy buildings that were able to withstand sandstorms.

"Here." He says, digging into his pocket and handing her a key with the number 12 on it.

Gaara leads her to a building that had that number carved into the door. This was apparently going to be her home for the next few weeks or months.

"Thanks." She says with a smile and walks inside.

"I hope you'll be comfortable. But I'm afraid, I have to get back to work." Gaara says and Suki nods.

"I hear that paperwork can be quite the formidable opponent." She says slyly.

"You have no idea." Gaara says and teleports off.

She looks around. It was a nice apartment. Two bedrooms, a living room, bathroom, kitchen, laundry room, and a closet. Small but more than big enough for her needs.

The brunette heads into the kitchen. She wondered if there was any food in there. If not, she'd have to go out and buy something.

"Thank God. He really does think of everything." She says, noticing that there were canned goods in the cupboard.

She grabbed a couple and made herself some dinner. The brunette couldn't believe she was actually out of the Leaf. Even more surprising, she had ended up in the Sand.

She shivers when she remembered that the feeling of Gaara applying the lotion to her skin. He had been so gentle. It was like when he tended to her after she shattered the glass. Gaara might have missed his calling as a medic, she mused.

"I might as well enjoy the peace and quiet." She muses and then looks out her window.

She blinks. There were definitely more Sand Villagers than usual milling around. It felt like she was being watched.

It didn't feel like she was being threatened. They seemed more curious than anything. She waves to them and they actually wave back.

"Alright, maybe not quiet. But still better than the Leaf." She says with a smile and closes the blinds on her window.

"That's the Uchiha up there! I'm sure of it." One of the Sand Villagers says.

The apartment had a bottom floor and a top floor. On the bottom was the living room, kitchen, and laundry room. The top floor had the bedrooms and bathroom. So Suki was on the top floor at the moment.

"Yeah! That's her. Maybe the rumors were true after all and the Kazekage just wants to keep their relationship private?" Another says.

"I doubt it. The Kazekage has always been rather honest. I can't se him keeping a secret like that." A third says and the group heads off while they quietly debate this matter, their discussion completely unbeknownst to the Uchiha.


	5. Chapter 5

We're the Same

Author's Note: Thanks for the reviews. I hope you guys enjoy this chapter. Hopefully, chapter glitch is gone. For some reason, chapters would appear, disappear, and reappear later.

Chapter Five

Gaara hadn't been lying. He did have a lot of paperwork to get through. Mostly, it was an excuse though. The red head knew that he needed to get away from her before he said or did something foolish.

For instance, it had been very foolish to rub that lotion into her. He'd never really gotten to touch her much outside of combat or tending to injuries. So the Kazekage hadn't really had a chance to really appreciate just how soft and warm she was. Her skin felt like…silk.

"I need to concentrate." He mutters as he rereads the paragraph on the paper in front of him for the fifth fucking time.

His eyes would scan the page. Truly, Gaara meant to actually read what was before him. But he would get to the end and realize he hadn't retained a single thing. His thoughts always drifted right back to her.

This was getting to be annoying. Maybe it was more than lust. Perhaps it was what Naruto called a _crush?_ How the Hell did people concentrate under these conditions?!

"Lord Kazekage, are you alright? I heard growling." Baki says as he enters the room.

Had he actually growled? Oh he probably had. It was just so frustrating. He was trying to do paperwork and he just kept thinking about things like how long her legs,

They would look good wrapped around him as he took her against the wall. She seemed fond of that particularly location. She had said she wanted to be thrown against one and made love to until she and her lover passed out.

"Oh I'm fine. I just can't seem to concentrate." He mutters.

It wasn't a lie. He just wasn't telling the full truth. Thankfully, Baki didn't seem to notice. He nods his head sympathetically.

"Well it is a bit late. Perhaps you should call it a night. I doubt there is anything there that can't wait until morning." He offers.

"You're right. Good night, Baki." Gaara says with a forced smile and heads offs off.

He sighs when he arrives at his room. The red head quickly locked the door behind him. He wanted to be alone with his thoughts. The young Kazekage knew that he damn sure wasn't going to get any sleep that night.

He was still an insomniac. Old habits died hard, Gaara supposed. He no longer had to worry about the demon taking over while he slept, but it was too firmly engrained in his psyche. Sleep was bad. Bad things happened when you slept.

Kankuro knocks on Gaara's door. It was unusual for Gaara to be home this "early." The Sun hadn't even set. He knew that the red head was a night owl. He claimed he got the most work done at night. So for him to be home now, generally meant something had happened. And like any good older brother, he was going to check on him to make sure he was okay.

"Coming." Gaara mutters, getting off his bed, and unlocking the door.

He didn't know whether to be relieved or not that it was Kankuro. The Kazekage realized he probably wasn't fit company for anyone at the moment. But seeing his brother always made him feel better. They had grown close in recent years.

"Everything okay? It's not like you to be home this early." Kankuro asks.

"Yes. Everything is fine. Thank you for asking though." The red head lies and apparently, Kankuro saw right through it.

The puppet master raises an eyebrow. Something was up. Something big. Gaara might not be conscious of it, but he had a "tell" for when he was upset. The word fine in Gaaraese meant, _"Something is bothering me. But I'm not going to tell anyone that. I'm just going to pretend that everything is fine and suffer in silence."_

"Gaara, it's really not nice to lie to people. It's especially not nice to lie to your brother. What's bothering you?" Kankuro asks again.

Damn it. The Kazekage would never understand how his brother could see through his polite white lies. But he always did.

"I don't want to talk about it." He answers honestly.

"Well maybe you should. You know that I'm here for you. Sometimes it helps just to talk about it." He offers.

Gaara sighs. He knew that Kankuro was only trying to help. It wasn't the puppet master's fault that his body had suddenly decided to wage a war against his mind. Lust vs. Logic. Logic was currently losing rather badly.

"Have you ever been attracted to a woman?" Gaara asks suddenly.

"Well yeah. Of course I have. I mean it's okay to be attracted to men as well. But I'm just not wired that way. Most men are attracted to women. It's perfectly natural. Why would you ask that?" The puppet master replies.

"Have you ever wanted someone, that you shouldn't?" The red head ignores his question.

Maybe Kankuro could actually help him. Maybe there was a way to make this go away. He could have a professional friendship with Suki and leave it at that. It's not as though she desired anything else from him.

"Maybe once or twice. Wait are you…who is she?" He asks curiously.

"This is all purely…hypothetical." The red head replies, hoping that his brother would actually buy that.

Kankuro doesn't buy it. But he wasn't going to tell the Kage that. He wanted to get some answers. If he went along with it being hypothetical, he might get some.

"Alright. What do you want to know exactly? Why shouldn't you be attracted to this imaginary woman? Is she married or seeing someone else?" The older man asks.

Gaara shakes his head. Suki definitely wasn't married. If she was seeing someone, it would be the talk of all Five Nations. She was the last Uchiha. Her "dating" or having a lover, would be big news. No, she was available in the loosest sense of the word.

"No." The Kazekage replies automatically.

"Alright. Is she a lot older or a lot younger than you, in this scenario?" His brother tries again.

"In this scenario, we are peers. There's at most a year between us." The red head answers honestly.

"Alright, not already taken and the age isn't questionable. Hmm. Is she a civilian or something?" Kankuro asks and Gaara couldn't bite back his laugh at that.

Suki would never be a civilian. The woman had been bred for combat. She was an absolute tigress on the battlefield. No, he couldn't picture her being a civilian, ever.

"No. She's a ninja. That's not the issue. In this case, say she lives…far away." Gaara offers.

"Well you don't strike me as the clingy type. So I doubt long distance would be an issue for her. What about the girl…hypothetically?" The other ninja asks.

Gaara frowns. He didn't know really. Suki struck him as rather independent. He doubted she was clingy.

"She's used to being alone?" He offers.

"Ah then long distance could work. That or maybe she could move to the Sand, if you two really hit it off." The puppet master replies.

"I don't think she feels that way towards me. She let me put suntan lotion on her, but other than that…our contact has been confined to battles, training, or trending to each other's injuries." Gaara says.

"AH HA! I knew there was someone!" Kankuro says triumphantly and Gaara gulps, he shouldn't have said that.

Meanwhile Suki felt restless. She decides it wasn't THAT late. The brunette descends the stairs and heads off into the Sand Village. She was going to be staying here for at least a few weeks, maybe a few months. The last Uchiha decided she might as well familiarize herself with her new surroundings.

"Look! It's the Uchiha!" She heard someone say as she walked down the street.

She glances at them. It was just a kid. He couldn't have been more than 5 or 6 years old. He wasn't a threat. Suki looks at his father (or at least she assumed it was his father.) He didn't seem…terrified of her. She supposed that was a good sign.

"It's not nice to point at people." He gently chides his son and scoops him up, so that he was riding on his back.

"Yes, father." He mumbles.

"Sorry about this. He's just…young." The father says sheepishly and Suki nods.

"Do you really think it's true that they are going to get married? She is really pretty. I can see why he likes her!" The kid says.

Suki blinks. What was that boy talking about? Who did he think she might get married to? She'd just arrived in this village. The only men she knew from it were Gaara, Kankuro, and to a lesser extent Baki.

"Kids say the darnest things." The man says nervously.

"Their cute when they are that age. Don't worry about it." She says and the man nods, carrying his boy off.

Suki shakes her head. So much for that whole theory about Sand Villagers being less prone to gossip than the Leaf. Even the kids apparently were in on it.

As she was walking along the street, she saw something out of the corner of her eye. She walks closer to investigate. It was a man and a woman. They were kissing. Clearly, they were rather…enamored with each other and too caught up in their passion to care if anyone saw them.

"Gossip and PDA…check." She whispers to herself in amusement and blinks when the man's hands start to wander.

She quickly leaves. Suki didn't want to be caught staring at them. It didn't matter that they were on a public street. The last Uchiha did not want to be known as a voyeur.

The Sand was a smaller village than the Leaf. She supposed it had to be. They lived in a desert. There was only so much water.

She noted that the architecture was different as well. The Leaf was fond of building tall buildings. Most Sand buildings only had one or two floors and more often than not they were rounded. She supposed this was to protect from sandstorms.

"Would you like your palm read, miss?" She hears someone say and tilts her head.

Her palm read? What did that even mean? Still it was rare for her to be approached by someone so boldly. She heads over.

"It's all in good fun. I've been going to Madam Mistzu for years." She hears someone say, inside the small tent.

"Madam Mitszu?" Suki asks in confusion.

"She uses her chakra to do readings on people. She can read your past, present, and future, just by interjecting some chakra over your hand." He explains.

Suki raises an eyebrow. This had to be some kind of hoax. But she didn't really have anything better to do. Let the woman make something up about her. This could be funny.

"I see." She says as she walks over to the elderly woman who was clad in colorful robes.

"You're a skeptic. That's alright. Most people are at first, especially when they come from other villages." She says with a friendly smile.

Suki glances at her up and down. She had to be in her fifties at least, most likely sixties. The woman had long silver hair and wore a pearl necklace. Her eyes were dark green. Though her skin was weathered by the harsh desert climate and the wrinkles of age, the last Uchiha thought she must have been a beauty once upon a time. She didn't look like a threat, but she knew better than to judge a book by its cover.

"A little bit. I guess I don't need to ask, how you knew I was from another village." She says, glancing down at her normally ivory pale skin, which still was rosy pink from her sunburn.

"Yes, one doesn't need to be a psychic to realize you aren't from around here." Mitszu says with a chuckle.

Suki nods. She sits down on the chair across from the "psychic." She seemed nice. It probably just an easy way for an old woman to make some extra money. She could humor her.

"The first reading is free. Give me your hand. I simply apply some chakra to read your palm lines." She says.

"Is it painful?" Suki asks and the woman shakes her head, explaining that if it was painful… no one would pay for her to do it.

Suki couldn't fault that logic. She hands the old woman her hand. The brunette watches as the woman's chakra flowed on her hand and magnified the lines on it.

"This is your past line. There are many breaks in it and it's quite dark. You've suffered greatly. I mean no offense. But it's unlikely you have many friends. You are a very…private person." She muses.

Suki shrugs. She couldn't argue with that. She had Naruto, Sakura, Kakashi, and maybe Gaara. That was about it. And half the time she and Naruto spent "communicating" through their fists.

"That's true. But you could have guessed that about almost anyone." She reasons.

"You were closer to your mother than your father. You do have a long life line though. It's likely that you'll live to see your 100th birthday." She states.

"Goodie." Suki mutters somewhat sarcastically.

That meant roughly eighty years of being alone, most likely. She wasn't really looking forward to that. Some days, she thought it would just have been better if Itachi had finished her off with the rest of their Clan. She wasn't suicidal, she was just aimless. She was surviving out of habit, more than anything else.

"Your love line is quite interesting. It starts out so light and ends so darkly. You aren't one to fall in love easily. You're extremely monogamous. Most likely a rather possessive lover. But according to this, your lover wouldn't have a reason to stray. You are rather…passionate when you want to be." She continues.

"Thanks. I think…" She mutters.

That was true. She hadn't even had a crush as a child. Suki had been too focused on trying to avenge her Clan to worry about such trivial matters. If she found anyone attractive, it was a passing thought and nothing more. The only exception was…possibly Gaara. And he was firmly off limits.

"How old are you, my dear?" Madam Mitszu asks.

"18." Suki replies automatically.

"Well according to your love and lifeline, you won't be lonely much longer. Just keep an open heart." She says with a smile.

"Thanks." Suki says, getting up, and leaving.

Keep an open heart? Ha. The brunette was sure the woman said that to all her customers. Whatever. It didn't matter. It wasn't like any of that was for real. It was just…superstitious nonsense.

The next day, she heads to Gaara's office. She needed to talk to him about the Academy. She blinks when she walks in and sees Gaara. It looked like he hadn't slept at all the night before.

"Gaara?" She asks in concern.

"It's nothing. What can I do for you?" He asks as he looks up at her from behind his mountain of paperwork.

"Well I thought it would be best if we talked about the Academy. You could show me how yours normally operates and go from there." She says.

Gaara nods. Right. He had almost forgotten about the Academy. That was the reason she was here.

Damn Kankuro had weaseled the truth out of him last night. He knew that Gaara was " in love" with someone from another village. Thankfully, he hadn't gotten a name out of him yet.

He knew it was only a matter of time though. Eventually, Kankuro would ask Temari for assistance. Temari would get the truth out of him, no matter what he did. (The blonde really could be so pushy.)

"Good idea. Shall we go?" He asks and Suki nods, following him out the door.

It wasn't that long of a walk to the Academy. But it felt long. If Suki had been the type to blush easily, she would have blushed. At least the Sand Villagers weren't giving her terrified or awestruck stares. But they were staring at her curiously.

Sometimes they would look at her and then whisper to each other, excitedly. She knew when she was being talked about. Unfortunately, they were damn good whispers. Whenever she actually caught something it was usually, _"Do you think it's really true?"_

"Don't mind them. It's a small village. Frankly, now that the war is over…you are the most exciting topic of conversation for most of them. They don't mean any harm." Gaara assures her.

"It's okay. I've dealt with worse." She mutters and follows him into the Academy.

He nods. They enter. She noticed it was a building with about 10 classrooms in it. As they walked around, she noticed the children were clearly not separated by age. There were five year olds, sitting next to twelve year olds in some cases.

"We are going to sit in on one of the lessons. Please continue and pretend we are not here." Gaara says and the instructor nods.

Yeah that whole pretending they weren't here request, didn't really work out. Every kid wanted to see the Kazekage and get a look at Suki Uchiha. She knew she had been recognized. She heard a few people say, _"Uchiha."_ She was impressed that even some of the smaller children seemed to know who she was.

"CHILDREN! BACK TO THE LESSON. YOU HEARD OUR LORD KAZEKAGE! Honestly, a ninja shouldn't allow himself or herself to be so easily distracted." The instructor yells and everyone goes silent, promptly turning around to hear the lesson.

About an hour later the lesson ends. The children were dismissed for recess. Suki reluctantly goes with Gaara to speak with the instructor.

She mostly did this to prevent the poor guy from having a heart attack. Otherwise he would be wondering if he had done a bad job in front of his Kage. Suki was many things, but she wasn't cruel enough to put the man through that kind of Hell.

"You did well. You were able to corral them. I apologize for interrupting your class. This is Suki. She's here from the Leaf to help us with the reorganizing of the Academy." Gaara explains.

He sounded so… _official._ It was hard to believe that he wasn't even twenty yet. Suki decides to let Gaara do the talking. He was better this than she was. She was more of a…hands on ninja. Her Chidori, fireballs, and sword did most of her "talking" for her.

"Thank you, Lord Kazekage. You are too kind. It is a pleasure to meet you Miss Uchiha. What did you think?" He asks curiously.

"You taught well. Though I think that lesson went over the heads of half the class. That was clearly designed for a child who is at least 8 or 10." She says.

The instructor nods. It was a struggle. If he "dumbed it down" enough for the younger children to understand, the older children would be horribly bored. If he made the lessons too difficult, the younger children would give up.

"As I said you did well. I won't take up anymore of your time. Suki, shall we break for lunch?" He asks and the Uchiha nods, heading off with him.

"You should separate them by age." She says once they were out of earshot.

Gaara nods. He knew that. The red head had thought so himself many times. But there just weren't enough instructors to make it feasible.

"Not enough instructors." He says.

"Oh. Then you should hire more of them." She offers.

"We're a small village. It's a question of priorities. I can only spare so many experienced ninja to teach." Gaara explains.

Suki nods. That made sense. There had to be something they could do though. That was a disaster in the making. (Though she knew having an Academy at all in the Sand, was a big step. For years, children had been trained individually.)

"What about retired ninjas?" Suki asks.

"I never thought of that. I'll have to look into the matter and see if there are any who would be interested in a teaching position." He replies.

The brunette nods. She let Gaara lead the way. Quite honestly, she had no idea where they were going. Did he mean they were going to eat together? Well she guessed that wasn't a big deal, they had already drank together.

"Would you prefer to eat someplace private or in one of our restaurants?" The Kazekage inquires.

"Private would probably be better. Your people are more subtle than the Leaf's. But it still gets a bit unnerving after awhile." The last Uchiha admits.

"What gets unnerving?" The other ninja questions her.

Suki bit her lower lip. How could she possibly explain this without it sounding offense? The Sand Villagers had been far more accepting of her than she had any right to expect. But still she felt like a tiger at a zoo. Everyone was staring at her.

"The stares and whispers." Suki says.

"I'll talk to them about it, if you like. Though in their defense, it's only natural." The red head says.

Suki shakes her head. She didn't need Gaara to fight her battles for her. Besides, that would only make things more awkward. She knew his heart was in the right place though. He was only trying to help.

"I appreciate it. But forget it. It's not a big deal. Wait, what do you mean it's only natural?" She asks him curiously.

"If a beautiful woman walks by, a man is going to stare. As for the women, you are rather well known now. You and Naruto were able to defeat Madara. That is certainly something worth whispering about. They don't mean any harm. I'm sure once they get used to seeing you in the Sand, they'll remember their manners." He assures her.

"…" Suki is speechless.

"Are you alright?" The Kazekage inquires in concern.

"Yes, I'm fine. I'm just not used to the Desert Sun, yet. Let's go eat." She says and Gaara nods, leading her back to his home.

Gaara had called her beautiful. She knew better than to actually ask him about it. It would only lead to awkwardness. The brunette highly doubted he would lie about whether or not he found her attractive, but Gaara was a special case. To him it might simply be a matter of pointing out that he thought OTHERS thought she was beautiful.

"Is there anything you would prefer to have?" The red head inquires.

For now, she decides it was best just to enjoy a quiet lunch. That was one thing the Sand was, quiet. Unlike the Leaf, which was an extremely noisy place. That was why she preferred the Sand Village over the Leaf. It was less…hectic. People mostly seemed to mind their own business. They were largely polite. And thankfully, no one had Naruto's loudmouth.

"Maybe just a salad. I'm not that hungry." Suki tells him.

Naruto was her best friend. He had stuck by her through everything. But sometimes, she felt like she should invest in earplugs. The lung capacity of that man was amazing.

She was grateful that Gaara was so quiet by comparison. Oh and he was really good with his hands when it came to apply suntan lotion. Which was an important quality in a lover, being good with their hands.

"I'll go grab us something from the kitchen." He says and heads off.

A few minutes later, he comes back with some kind of soup for himself and a tomato salad for her. She smiles. Tomatoes were her favorite. Had he known that or had it been a lucky guess?

"Naruto told me that you were fond of tomatoes. I suppose they are healthier than ramen." He offers.

"That's true." She agrees and begins eating with him.

He remembered she liked tomatoes. That was sweet. Gaara actually paid attention to little details like that. It was at that moment, that Suki Uchiha realized this could easily spiral out of control.

She really shouldn't be thinking things like that. Gaara was a Kage. She was a former S Class Criminal. It would never work and she also really needed to stop thinking about his hands on her skin.

It didn't matter that he had a gentle touch. Animal attraction wouldn't be enough to overcome the political clusterfuck that would result from their involvement and she was sure, he didn't feel that way about her anyway.


	6. Chapter 6

We're the Same

 **Author's Note:** Sorry this one is so late, I got caught up on other stories. Feel free to check them out, if you ever feel so inclined. A really nice review inspired me to update this one. As always, thanks for the reviews and I hope you enjoy this chapter.

Chapter Six

Naruto was surprised when the Council asked to see him. But he goes to see what they wanted. What he heard shocked him.

"We want to know if there is any truth to the rumor about Suki Uchiha and the Kazekage." One of the council members says quite plainly.

The blonde blinks. He couldn't believe it. The Council was actually asking for gossip? That had to be a first. He didn't see why they would care who Suki was dating or not dating.

"I don't think so. I mean I talked to them both about it. They denied it. They just had a few drinks together and Gaara dealt with some guy who wasn't taking no for an answer. Not a big deal." Naruto says.

He wasn't exactly lying. The blue eyed ninja just wasn't telling the whole truth. Yeah, they had both denied it. But he sent Suki to the Sand specifically to see if something would develop between them. For some reason, he didn't feel like he should inform the Council about that last part.

Something about this situation made him feel uneasy. Naruto had long ago learned to trust his instincts. Right now they were telling him, that talking to the Council about something like that, was a very bad idea.

"Are you certain? Normally, we would not lower ourselves to engage in petty gossip, but this is different. This involves a Kage and a former S Class Criminal. If they were romantically involved, it could have enormous implications on international security." Another councilmember states.

Naruto raises an eyebrow. He didn't see how them making out and holding hands, would have a big impact on security. The blonde thought that was a complete load of nonsense.

"How do you figure?" He asks.

"If the relationship ends poorly, the Kazekage may carry a grudge. It could damage our relationship with the Sand or lead to an outright war. If it was actually successful, he would likely want her to move to the Sand. Then the Leaf would lose a powerful bloodline." Came the response.

The Hokage pauses for a moment. That was actually a pretty good point. But this was Gaara. He wouldn't go to war over a bad breakup. He would never be that petty. The Leaf would lose a bloodline, but honestly…Suki's happiness came first. What was the point in rescuing her from darkness, only to keep her from finding love?

"Gaara's not like that. It's Suki's life. If something happened, that would be her decision not yours. You DON'T own her just because she has the Sharingan. She's not some war horse for you to breed, just so you can keep the Sharingan in the village." Naruto states firmly.

"So there IS something going on between them? Why else would you be so defensive at our merely asking questions? We are well aware that she is not a war horse. That would have made things much simpler. Unfortunately, she's far less trustworthy than an animal." A councilwoman replies.

Naruto twitches. How dare they talk about his best friend like that?! He could feel his teeth lengthening and Kyubbi's chakra begin to swirl around him.

"Lord Hokage?" One asks.

"DON'T YOU EVER TALK ABOUT ONE OF MY FRIENDS LIKE THAT AGAIN OR I WILL MAKE SURE YOU ARE NO LONGER SITTING ON THE COUNCIL!" He snarls at them.

The Council members gulp. They huddle together. Perhaps the Nine Tails held more influence over their normally beloved Hokage than they thought. They all knew that he was close to Suki. They had been teammates. But this was ridiculous, in their minds.

"Forgive us, Lord Hokage. We met no offense. We are only trying to discuss how such a relationship, might impact the village. Do you not agree that the Leaf's safety is the most important thing?" A council member summons up the courage to ask, trying to reason with the angry blonde.

"Whenever you talk about one of my friends like they are an animal, you are going to offend me. If you truly view a PERSON that way, maybe what's best for the village, would be to kick you all off the Council. I could put it to a vote amongst the rest of the Leaf." He warns them.

The Council members gulp. Damn it. The young Hokge was just hot headed enough to actually carry out his threat. They had to do something quickly to neutralize the situation. Surely, there was an Olive Branch they could offer that would soothe him.

"Understood, Lord Hokage. But that will not be necessary. We assure you. Suki Uchiha is the last of her Clan. As it stands now, when she dies, her bloodline will die with her. We do not wish to see that happen. But we are also not entirely comfortable with the bloodline falling into the hands over another village." He replies.

"That village is our ALLY. So you should be comfortable with it. Yeah, I can see why you'd view it as being better if she stayed here, but the Sand is our ally. There isn't a reason to worry about it." The blonde informs them.

The Council all sigh. Naruto was in some ways, far too innocent t be a Kage. He couldn't remember a time when the Five Nations were openly warring with each other. Sure, the Sand was an ally now. But there was no way to guarantee that it would stay that way.

"They are an ally now. That may not always be the case. Even f you trust Gaara completely, who is to say his successor will be equally trustworthy? Always hope for the best, but expect the worst." A councilwoman says.

"I think we are done here. Next time you want to talk to me about romantic rumors, don't. I'm Hokage. I have important work to do and so do you." The blonde says and storms off.

He couldn't remember the last time he'd been this agitated. It bothered him to her the Council talk about Suki as if she was some dangerous animal that needed to be kept in a cage. They actually thought they had the right to dictate what she and Gaara did with their love life. It was ridiculous.

The blonde was now glad he had sent her off. Screw them. They didn't have the right to meddle in people's lives like that and how dare they imply that either of his best friends were untrustworthy?

Meanwhile back in the Sand, Gaara and Suki were still eating. Neither was particularly talkative by nature. But when they did talk, the conversation flowed smoothly.

"Honestly, I have no idea what to do with them. That team is so talented, but they just can't work together. Never seen a more promising group of Genin, other than Team Seven." He muses.

"Gaara, it's two boys and one girl, what do you think is going on?" Suki asks and seems to be fighting back a snort of amusement.

He tilts his head. Suki thought the gesture was cute. He really didn't seem to get it. Oh well. She'd just have to spell it out for the red head.

"Love triangle. They'll either grow out of it, or one of them should be reassigned. Their only twelve. I'd give it a year, if you don't think that their team dynamic is bad enough to get them killed." The last Uchiha explains.

"You really think it's a love triangle? They are just children though." He protests.

"A lot of people get their first crushes at that age." She says with a shrug.

Gaara raises an eyebrow. He didn't say it, but she knew the man was silently asking if she had a crush at that age. The brunette debates about answering that unspoken question.

"I didn't really get crushes. My focus was on revenge. There were a few people I considered attractive, but it was never more than a glance or two." She replies honestly and shrugs.

"Who?" Gaara couldn't stop himself from asking.

"That's a little personal, don't you think?" She muses and bites into her salad as an excuse not to answer him.

"Well if you don't tell me who, I'll just have to guess. Lee?" He asks and Suki chokes on her salad, laughing.

She didn't know the red head had such a wicked sense of humor? Lee was nice. But he definitely wasn't her type. She didn't think she actually had a type. But if she did, someone who wore green spandex and was that perky, certainly wasn't it.

"No and that was more than a little sadistic. You almost made me choke on my salad." The brunette chides him gently.

"Well I never claimed not to be sadistic. But I was merely curious. You're right though. I shouldn't have asked. Forgive me for prying." The red head states as he turns his attention back to his meal.

"It's alright. So are you happy about Temari and Shikamaru?" Suki asks, wanting to change the subject.

Gaara considers this question. After a minute, he nods. He had never really been that close to Temari. This was mostly because of the demon and by the time he was calmer, he was busy being Kazekage. The Kage hadn't really had a chance to form much of a bond with his sister.

That wasn't to say he didn't care for the feisty blonde. He did. Gaara just didn't really know how to relate to her. Temari was your typical young woman. She loved shopping, gossip, fashion, and was completely enamored with her lover. Other than being ninjas, they had very little in common as far as he could see. Kankuro was just easier for him to relate to.

"I'm happy for them. I'm not entirely certain how that match works out. Temari has always been rather energetic and Shikamaru is well a more easy going sort." The Kazekage confesses.

"Maybe they balance each other out. Thanks for the apartment by the way. It's really nice." She says.

"I'm glad you like it." He says.

Briefly, he wonders if maybe he could convince her to stay. She liked her apartment. That had to be something right?

The Uchiha clearly wasn't happy in the Leaf. While his villagers were staring and whispering about her, she had said she'd seen worse. Maybe she'd be happier in the Sand.

He quickly squashes that thought. Suki had only been there a short time. He'd be asking her to leave behind her Clan's history. They had helped to found the Leaf. Suki's family was buried there. That alone was probably enough of a reason to keep her chained there.

"Mhm. I should probably get going." She says after finishing up her meal.

"Good night, Suki." He says as he watches her head off.

He was disappointed she was leaving, but honest enough with himself to realize he enjoyed the view greatly. There was a reason why Suki's fan club had never really went away, even as she became a Criminal Ninja. Now that she was reinstated, he figured that she had to deal with a lot of situations similar to what had happened in that bar.

Gaara's good mood was spoiled as he remembered that incident. That pervert. How dare he try to use her probationary status against her like that? He really should have killed him and improved the gene pool of the Leaf Village significantly.

"Not good." He mutters.

The Kazekage was intelligent enough to understand what jealousy was. He was jealous of that random ninja. Suki hadn't even liked him. But he was still jealous. This wouldn't end well. It'd probably be a good thing to send her back to the Leaf as soon as possible. Yes, that would be the wise thing to do.

Suki was heading back to her temporary home. She wasn't really watching where she was going. So perhaps it wasn't surprising when she bumped into Kankuro quite literally.

"Umpf! Sorry." He says.

"It's alright. You okay?" The brunette asks, not realizing who he was at first.

Kankuro wasn't wearing his makeup. She had never seen him without it. So in Suki's defense, maybe it wasn't entirely unexpected that she wouldn't recognize the puppet master.

"Yeah. I'm fine. Wait, UCHIHA?" He asks in disbelief.

Now Suki recognized him though. The last Uchiha recognized his voice. This was Gaara's older brother. Small village.

"Yes, that's me." Suki says and nods.

"I heard rumors you were here. But didn't actually believe them. How'd Naruto manage talk them into giving you a foreign mission?" He asks.

She shrugs. It was Naruto. He could talk people into doing anything. She had long ago stopped asking how. Sometimes this ability came in handy.

"Honestly, not really sure." The young woman answers him.

"Right. So what are you doing now?" He asks.

"Heading to my apartment, Gaara gave me." The Uchiha states as if it was obvious.

Kankuro blinks. There was something in the way she said that, that sounded a bit odd. It was the truth obviously. He knew that she wasn't lying. Gaara gave all foreign ninjas who were staying here on diplomatic missions, apartments. But it had sounded more _personal_ than that. Like he had given her a gift or something.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" Suki says and places her hands on her hips, sensing that she was about to get into an argument with the Kazekage's elder brother.

"It's nothing. So I guess you are going to be here for awhile?" He inquires.

"Probably a few weeks at least. Maybe a few months." Suki says with a shrug.

Kankuro blinks. He remembers his conversation with Gaara earlier. Suddenly, it was all starting to make a whole lot more sense.

 _"Have you ever wanted someone, that you shouldn't?" Gaara asked him._

 _"Maybe once or twice. Wait are you…who is she?" He remembered asking his younger brother._

 _"Why shouldn't you be attracted to this imaginary woman? Is she married or seeing someone else? Is she a lot older or younger than you? Is she a civilian or something?" Kankuro inquired._

 _"No, she's not married or seeing anyone. In this scenario, we are peers. There is at most a year between us. No. She's a ninja. That's not the issue. In this case, say she lives…far away." Gaara had answered him._

 _Kankuro had prodded about whether she was the clingy type. Gaara had said that she was used to being alone. Then he had made comments that made it obvious that there actually was a real woman involved and the conversation had ended._

Suki wasn't married, check. She was the same age, check. The Uchiha definitely wasn't a civilian, check. The sultry brunette lived in the Leaf which was a three day journey away from the sand, so far away was a check as well. Finally, if anyone was used to being alone, it was her. Check.

Shit! Gaara had feelings for Suki Uchiha. Kankuro didn't know how deep they were. It might just be a physical attraction. But somehow he doubted it. Gaara wouldn't have asked him things like that casually.

"Kankuro?" Suki asks.

It was strange. It was like the puppet master was with her, yet not. He was clearly deep in thought about something. She speculated it had something to do with her being in the Sand for awhile.

"Oh sorry. Um I kinda zoned there for a second. You want me to walk you home? I mean it'd probably make the villagers feel better if they saw you walking around with the Kazekage's brother. Let's them know you aren't a threat. You know?" He asks.

"That'd be nice. Thanks." She says, seemingly content to walk home with him.

He hadn't expected that. Kankuro figured she'd argue. Suki had never struck him as a particularly social person. Then again, she was logical when she wasn't half out of her mind with her desire for revenge. Maybe she just understood that he was right.

Kankuro walks alongside her. He couldn't help but glance at her. While he didn't really trust her, at least physically…he could understand why Gaara would be attracted to her. She was beautiful in the way that a panther was. Beautiful, but very deadly.

"So you need any help unpacking?" He asks.

"Not really, but I'd never say no to getting out of unpacking." Suki replies and heads up the stairs to show him where her stuff was.

Suki wasn't stupid. She knew that Kankuro was stalling for more time with her. What she didn't know was _**WHY.**_ The brunette decided that she was going to find out though. The best way to do that was by inviting him inside.

"Yeah. Me to. So how are you liking the village?" He asks as he helps her with the unpacking.

"If it wasn't for the heat, I'd say it was perfect. But I'll get used to that eventually. Gaara took pity on me and gave me some suntan lotion." She says and starts sorting through some boxes.

 _"I don't think she feels that way towards me. She let me put suntan lotion on her, but other than that…our contact has been confined to battles, training, or tending to each other's injuries."_ Gaara's words repeated themselves in Kankuro's head.

"So you two seem to be getting along, pretty well. I was kinda worried. I mean you two have a history of trying to kill each other." He says.

Suki raises an eyebrow. So that's what he was worried about. He was worried that she was going to attack his brother. It was a valid concern, she supposed. But still she had no intention of doing so. Gaara had been nothing but kind to her. There was no reason to do so.

"The first time wasn't his fault. He was under the influence of the demon. I was attacking the Kage Summit. He just happened to be a Kage. It wasn't personal. But yes, we are getting along fine now. He was nice enough to give me this place while I stay here." She says.

"We give an apartment to any foreign ninja, who is staying here on a diplomatic mission." Kankuro points out.

"Yes, he mentioned that." Suki replies with a shrug.

She didn't particularly care for the implication. _"You're not special. He would have done it for anyone."_ Suki wasn't bitchy enough to call him out on it though. That wasn't a good enough reason to pick a fight with the Kazekage's brother.

"Well that should be everything. Glad I could help. See you around." He says.

"Mhm." Suki responds and watches him head down the stairs with calculating eyes.

The brunette was sure he had been fishing for information. She just wasn't sure what he wanted to know exactly, but she didn't like it.

Kankuro curses under his breath. Gaara had a _thing_ for the Uchiha. He didn't know how deep his "affection" for her ran. But this was a big fucking deal. The puppet master didn't know what to do about it though.

Meanwhile Gaara heads to his room. He had no real hope that he would actually fall asleep that night. But still, he should at least try. He pulls out his copy of _**Into the Light.**_ Maybe some reading before bed would lull him to sleep.

"That was a bad idea." He mutters to himself a half hour later.

Reading that book now reminded him of HER. Suki definitely inspired many feelings in him, but sleep wasn't usually one of them. Though he does sigh, remembering that he had slept well at her house.

Sleep was still rather elusive to him. Old habits died hard. So he had deeply appreciated actually getting some quality sleep while there.

"I suppose it was just bad luck that I happened to have left it bookmarked on one of the more sensual passages." He murmurs.

That certainly hadn't helped. Now that he knew what her skin felt like when they weren't fighting, his imagination was rather impressive. He hadn't known that his imagination could be so creative.

He found that he was easily able to replace the main characters in the epic autobiography with himself and Suki. This was particularly true in the more intimate scenes.

He picks up some instructor reports from the Academy. He needed to take his mind off of her. Reading the "report cards" of some of the Academy students should do that. There was nothing sexy about that task.

"Or not." He growls in frustration.

Somehow his mind had gone through the hoops and made even that appealing. The Academy students were children. Suki wanted children to restore her Clan. Which led to thoughts about the actual process of restoring it. And this in turn, meant he was now one very _frustrated_ Kazekage.

He mentally smacks himself. It was a bad idea. Even if she was interested, she would eventually have to transfer to the Sand. He couldn't move to the Leaf. He was Kazekage.

"And that's assuming Naruto would even allow such a thing. He spent years trying to get her to go back to the Leaf." Gaara observes.

The problems didn't stop there though. The blonde might be persuadable. Gaara figured that his best friend was likely a romantic. He might approve the transfer if they could convince him it was true love. But the rest of the ninja world, likely wouldn't be anywhere near as forgiving.

She was a former S Class Criminal Ninja. The woman had fought alongside Naruto, as equals to Madara. She was very dangerous. The Uchiha also had a bloodline she could pass on. If she had a lover, who was a Kage…things would get complicated very quickly.

"Not only would she have her own physical power, she'd have political power." He mutters.

Suki wouldn't even necessarily have to be his wife. Just being his "consort" was enough. It would set off a firestorm in all Five Nations. The Leaf and Sand were already allies, but a blood tie like that, would only further cement the alliance.

People might assume she had seduced him for the political power. Others might assume he convinced her to be his lover, because he wanted a bloodline in the Sand Village. He doubted very many would assume they were together purely out of love.

"It shouldn't matter though." He says to himself.

If he wasn't Kazekage, it wouldn't. But he had more than just himself to think about. He had his entire village. If he got into a relationship with her, it would impact them.

He winced as he remembered what happened when he returned to the village. It had been utter chaos. The red head now knew what to expect if she actually returned his affections.

"It doesn't matter though. She doesn't." He says.

Gaara was unaware of the fact that Suki was having similar thoughts about him at that very moment. The brunette was being tormented by the memory of him gently tending to her injuries and applying the suntan lotion to her skin. This wouldn't end well, was her final thought before going to bed.


	7. Chapter 7

We're the Same

 **Author's Note:** Thanks for the reviews. It's always nice to get them, but especially for an unconventional pairing, lol. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this chapter.

 **Sand Cats** : I made an OC Sand Cat in this chapter. But Sand Cats are real animals. Google them, if you are curious. They are very cute. ^.^

Chapter Seven

A few days later, Kankuro was sure of it. There was no doubt about it. Gaara definitely had feelings for the last Uchiha. It seemed possibly mutual and that made the situation even more frightening.

If he wasn't looking, he probably wouldn't have noticed it. Truthfully, it was little things. They would always walk side by side. Most ninjas would automatically walk a few steps behind a Kage. This was considered a gesture of respect. To walk side by side, generally meant that the Kage and other ninja acknowledged each others as equals consciously or subconsciously. They also walked just a little bit too closely for his liking.

"I spoke with a few retired ninjas. I have three that might be interested in the teaching position so far." He hears Gaara say to Suki.

"That's good. The Academy will do so much better, once the lesson plans are age appropriate." Came her reply.

The conversation sounded completely professional. There wasn't anything out of the ordinary. After all, isn't that why she was in the Sand in the first place? She was here to help them with their Academy program. So it was natural for them to be discussing the hiring of instructors.

Normally, he would have been happy to see Gaara express an attraction to anyone. But why did it have to be her? Did he have to choose a woman who could level a village by herself?! A woman who was known for her revengeful nature?

"I thought so as well. Kankuro, is there something you wanted? You have been staring at us for the past ten minutes rather intensely." Gaara comments.

Kankuro knew that the red head wasn't being sarcastic. If it had been anyone else, he would have thought that was sarcasm. But no, this was Gaara. He was just making an observation.

"No. I just wanted to say good morning and see if you were interested in getting some breakfast with me." Kankuro says with a smile.

"Damn it. That reminds me. I promised that I'd meet with the head of the Academy for breakfast. I should get going or I'm going to be late." Suki says and saunters off swiftly.

Yeah, Kankuro understood. The woman couldn't even do something as simple as walking, without turning it into an unintentional seduction. She moved completely silently and with a lethal, sensual grace. The way her hips swayed was hypnotic. He wasn't the only one looking though, Gaara was. (Well at least he was being subtle about it, but still Kankuro noticed.)

"Breakfast sounds good." Gaara says with a small smile that he reserved for his brother and Naruto.

"How about we have it at my place?" Kankuro asks and the red head nods his head in agreement, following his brother.

The puppet master wasn't sure how to broach the subject. Gaara might get angry. He might just deny it. But he had no other choice. Kankuro knew he had to bring it up.

"Gaara, I remembered our conversation and it's making a lot more sense to me now." He begins.

"What conversation are you referring to specifically?" Gaara asks as he sips his morning tea, completely unsuspecting.

"The one where you asked about if I had ever wanted someone I shouldn't. I don't think you were just asking a theoretical question. I can't help but notice that a certain Uchiha checks all the boxes." The other Sand Villager continues.

Gaara raises an eyebrow. Checks all the boxes? What did that even mean? He couldn't help but feel uneasy though. Kankuro had mentioned Suki. Did he know?

"I'm not sure I know what boxes you are speaking of." The red head replies.

"Foreign ninja, single, same age, and used to being alone." The puppet master reminds his brother of all the "clues" he had given Kankuro during their last conversation about this subject.

Had Gaara been a lesser man, he would have gulped. Thankfully, he was the Kazekage. He was used to having to keep his composure in uncomfortable situations. This was a skill that had served him well in the past and it was continuing to do so, on this occasion.

"Are you trying to imply that you believe I have romantic feelings for her?" The young Kage demands.

"Yeah. I guess I am. I saw the way you were looking at her when she walked away." Kankuro says.

"If you saw it, that means you were looking as well. So forgive me, if I don't care for the lecture." Gaara mutters.

Kankuro blinks. He had expected the red head to deny it. The older Sand Sibling, didn't think he'd actually admit to it and try to turn it around on him.

"That's a little different. I'm not actually going to hit on her. I'm just admiring the scenery. That's all." He protests.

"I was doing the same. I told you, that I don't think she feels that way about me. So I'm not going to push the issue. She's here for a few months at most and then she's going back to the Leaf." The Kazekage says and begins eating his breakfast.

The other Sand Villager detected a slight hint of bitterness or maybe sulking to his tone. Most people wouldn't have noticed. But Kankuro knew his brother.

"What if she asked to stay?" He asks.

"I'd have to talk to Naruto about such a transfer. It is after all standard procedure to notify another Kage if a ninja wishes to transfer to your village. Though that is irrelevant. She's not going to ask to stay." Gaara replies and Kankuro got the impression of a cat bristling and backing into a corner in his mind.

He'd struck a nerve. Yeah, he definitely had. Gaara actually wanted her to stay on some level. This had the potential to get messy and quickly.

"I guess that explains why you went ballistic on some creep who hit on her at the bar. You were jealous." He muses.

"I was not jealous of some scum who had to used her probationary status against her. He was harassing her. There was absolutely no reason to be jealous of that type of insect." The red head protests.

Kankuro raises an eyebrow. Insect was getting pretty personal to describe a frisky drunk. Oh yeah, the Kazekage had been very jealous. He might not admit it, but it was clear as day.

"Uh huh. I'm amazed that the village listened to you when you called that meeting. What do you think Suki would have said, if she knew that half of the village had thought you were lovers before she showed up?" He inquires.

"Kankuro, you are my brother. I care for you a great deal. But if you do not silence yourself immediately, I will not be held responsible for my actions." Gaara warns him.

Kankuro was smart enough to realize when he should shut up. He would very much like to see his next birthday. Thank you very much.

"Right. I'll drop it. If you ever want to talk about it though, you know where to find me." He offers and Gaara nods.

Meanwhile Suki was having her breakfast with the head of the Academy. She wasn't surprised to realize that he was nervous. To his credit though, he hid it fairly well.

"Welcome Lady Suki." He says and leads her into the cafeteria.

"Lady Suki?" She asks and raises an eyebrow.

"You are technically the head of your Clan. So that is your proper title, is it not?" He asks in confusion.

Suki supposed that was technically accurate. It didn't feel right though. Her mother had been a Lady. She was anything but. There was far too much blood on her hands, to claim such a _gentle_ title.

"On paper, yes. In reality, I think we both know that I'm not my mother." She replies.

"I meant no offense." He stammers quickly, not wanting to face the wrath of the Uchiha woman.

"None was taken. Anyway, Gaara said that he was in the midst of talking to some retired ninjas about becoming Academy instructors. What is your opinion on this matter?" The young woman inquires.

The man, Shora, considers her question. He knew it was a logical suggestion. That and he really did not want to risk getting on the bad side of a woman who was actually capable of injuring the Kazekage.

"I think it is a fine idea." Shora replies.

He found himself distracted though. The Uchiha had called him, _Gaara._ hadn't called him the Kazekage, Lord Kazekage, or any other title that would have shown the proper respect to his position.

Usually calling a Kage by their first name, meant you were family or knew them rather intimately. (You might be their spouse, their lover, a former teammate, or classmate.) He knew that most of those options were untrue in this case. But he had heard the speculation before her arrival. Maybe there was some truth to the rumors after all?

"Great. I'm sure he'll be sending the candidates for your review, shortly." Suki says.

"I must say, that you are adjusting rather well. Most ninjas from other nations have difficult adjusting to the heat." He comments.

"Thanks. It is…a difficult adjustment. But I think being from a Fire Clan probably helps." She replies with a shrug.

He noted her skin had turned only lightly pink. She must have been taken precautions. Skin that fair turned dark red, quickly underneath the punishing Desert Sun, if you didn't.

"Possibly. How are you liking the village?" Shora asks, attempting to make conversation.

It was hard to believe that this woman, had once attacked the Kage Summit. She seemed perfectly calm at the moment. But he knew that a cobra could strike quickly, when in the mood.

"I quite like it. It's quieter than the Leaf. Smaller, but that doesn't bother me. It has to be. Water restrictions. The culture is…different than the Leaf." She muses.

"In what way?" Shora questions her, genuinely curious to get an outsider's perspective.

"More formal. But in some ways, more open. The villagers here seem less bashful about being affectionate towards each other." She replies tactfully.

"Oh yes. No offense intended. But our people have always been quite amused by how bashful Leaf Villagers are when it comes to things as simple as kissing and the like." He notes.

She nods in a way that showed no offense was taken. Shora began to wonder if perhaps the change in scenery had done her some good. So far she had shown no signs of aggression.

"Well that's all that I really wanted to discuss. I should probably head off. Gaara will likely want to introduce me to his potential picks." She says and heads off.

Meanwhile back in the Leaf, Naruto was enjoying his breakfast and in deep reflection. He wondered how things were going with Gaara and Suki. The fact that the Council was actually worried enough about it to meddle, troubled him.

Idly, he realized he probably should have seen the signs. Even back when they were Genin, Gaara had been rather fixated on her. He wanted to kill her. (Naruto now supposed that was the demonic version of a really twisted crush?)

"She completely ignored our team, when they were around. But I just thought it was because they were foreign ninjas." The blonde muses to himself as he downs another bowl of ramen.

Looking back now, he wondered if Gaara would have actually gone through with it. He had Suki cornered on that tree when the Uchiha was trying to protect Sakura. She had been at the end of her rope. If he had arrived a few minutes later, would the red head have killed her or not? He didn't know.

It went further though. Gaara had tried to reason with her when she was at the Kage Summit. He had failed in that attempt, but he had still made it. None of the other Kages had. After the war, he had spoken up to defend her.

"I thought he did it for me. That he did it because he knew I'd be upset if she died. But I might have been wrong." He continues going through the list of signs.

He didn't doubt that played a large part in why Gaara had come to her defense. But now the blonde, thought it wasn't all of it. It might not even have been the main reason. The fact that he had "protected" her from a drunk, only added further credibility to this theory.

"Naruto, are you alright? You are talking to yourself." Ayame asks with a kind smile.

"Oh yeah! I'm fine. Just thinking out loud. Don't worry. Can I have another bowl of ramen?" He asks cheerfully.

"Of course." She says and gets him another bowl.

Naruto decides maybe he should write them both. He might get a response and see what was going on. After finishing his last bowl of ramen, he heads home and pens his letters. He addressed one to Suki and one to Gaara.

 _ **Dear Suki,**_

 _ **How is it going in the Sand? You must be red as a tomato by now. Things are going okay in the Leaf. But when you get back, there's something I need to talk to you about. It can wait, but just so you are aware.**_

 _ **Naruto.**_

He pauses for a minute and tries to decide what to write to Gaara. If either of them had feelings for each other, the red head was probably the more likely one to admit it. Suki was a vault.

 _ **Dear Gaara,**_

 _ **Hey, how is it going in the Sand? Has Suki been behaving herself? I hope she hasn't been causing you too much trouble.**_

 _ **Can't Wait to Hear from You, Naruto.**_

He decides the letters were vague enough that it wouldn't matter if they were intercepted. The blonde straps them to the leg of a messenger hawk. He smiles as they take off.

Later that night, Suki goes to visit Gaara. She wasn't sure where the red head went for most of the day. She doubted breakfast with Kankuro took THAT long. But she knew sooner or later, he'd come back to his place.

She heads inside. The brunette calls out for the Kazekage. Hearing nothing, she frowns and looks around.

What she didn't know is that Gaara just hadn't heard her over the sound of the water. The red head was taking a long hot shower. He tried not to indulge too much in this luxury, but he needed to take his mind off of Kankuro's earlier interrogation. That's when he heard her, Suki had finally gotten close enough to the bathroom for him to hear her calling out for him.

"I'll be out in a minute." Gaara calls out and quickly shuts off the water.

The Kazekage dries off somewhat and throws on a white bathrobe. He was still soaked, but just dry enough to get into the damn thing. The young Kage heads out to greet Suki.

"Oh. That's why you weren't answering." She observes when she saw a soaking wet red head, come out in only a bathrobe.

Suki swallows hard. He was still wet enough that very little about his form was left to her imagination. Gaara might have been a stationary fighter, but thanks to carrying that fucking heavy gourd on his back for likely the better part of a decade, he was rather well sculpted.

Yeah, that wasn't helping her. It was one thing to be attracted to someone. It was another to actually act on it. He was a Kage. That put him firmly in the OFF LIMITS camp.

"Yes, sorry. I didn't hear you. Did you need something?" He asks, seemingly unaware of her inner turmoil.

She nods. The brunette was just having a really hard time remembering what it was at the moment. She knew that it was important. God damn it, what was it. Those biceps were really fucking distracting.

"I thought you might want to go over the applicants. I couldn't find you after I got done speaking with Shora. He seems nice by the way." She adds as an afterthought.

"Oh right. My apologies. I lost track of time. Wait here and I'll go get their files for you to review." Gaara says and he gestures to the couch.

Suki nods. She sits down on the couch. The red head darts off to get the files about the potential instructors.

Files were good. Files were very practical and boring. Suki might be able to focus on them, instead of wondering what else was underneath that bathrobe when she was reading them.

"Here you go." Gaara says a few minutes later, as he hands them to her.

"Thank you." The last Uchiha replies as she glances them over.

They all seemed qualified to her. Suki shakes her head in amusement. If anyone had told her a year ago, that she would be reviewing potential instructors for the Sand's Academy, she would have laughed her ass off.

She hadn't given a damn about the Leaf's Academy, after her family's death. Before that, she had been a devoted student. Suki remembered a time when her younger self, had hoped to impress her father with her good marks.

It hadn't ended the way she had hoped. Instead of saying, _"As expected of my child,"_ he had only said, _"If you continue to do this well, someday you'll be a great ninja like Itachi."_ Still even after the Massacre, she had excelled. She just hadn't cared that much.

"What do you think?" He asks, once she had time to glance at them.

"They all seem qualified to me. I doubt you could go wrong with any of them." The dark haired woman replies.

Gaara nods. That's what he had thought. Still it was good to know that she agreed with him. He knew that it shouldn't matter as much as it did, but it made him happy that she felt the same way.

"I'm surprised Naruto hasn't written yet." She murmurs.

"I am as well. I imagine his letters are on the way, as we speak though." Gaara notes with a quiet chuckle.

Suki nods. Naruto meant well. But she knew that essentially what he was doing, was babysitting her. He was trying to protect her and she appreciated it, but still. No matter what she did, everything that Suki Uchiha did in the Leaf would always be suspect.

In the Sand, things were a little different. Sure, people stared at her and there were some quiet whispers. But it wasn't with the same intensity in the Leaf. This was likely the closest to a blank slate she was ever going to get. So in a way, she was enjoying that.

"Most likely." The brunette agrees.

"Are you alright? Your mind seems to be a thousand miles away." The red head inquires.

"I'm fine. Just thinking. I should probably get going. I didn't mean to disturb you." She says as she stands up.

Gaara shakes his head. As much as he loved a hot shower, he knew that he would always choose her over it. He stands up as well. It was his intention to open the door for her, but things didn't work out as planned.

Nala was a Sand Cat. While Sand Cats were considered adorable by almost everyone, they were generally not good pets. They were too wild. This was not the case with Nala, Gaara had found her as a kitten.

"Thanks." Suki says and them cries out in surprise when a sandy blur streaks past her and she loses her footing.

The Uchiha falls right onto Gaara and they both land on the couch. Yes, Sand Cats could reach up to 25 miles per hour. They were fast, hence why she was a blur. Gaara really had to remember to get Nala some new treats. He needed to thank her because he was getting quite the view.

"What the Hell was that?" Suki asks in confusion.

"A Sand Cat." He replies and couldn't help but admire the gorgeous picture that was an Uchiha straddling his waist, from this angle he could see down her shirt.

Oh red lace. He never expected her to be a lace woman. He liked it though. Well he liked what he could see of it anyway.

"A Sand Cat?" She asks and raises an eyebrow.

"A small species of wild cats that live in the desert. They are often confused with housecats because of their size. Most are extremely wild though. Nala is an exception. I found her as a kitten." He explains.

"Oh." Suki says and tries to get off of him.

Gaara was just too slippery though. Having just gotten out of the shower, he was still wet. Suki just couldn't quite get off of him. She'd just end up sliding again and again.

Eventually, during one of these attempts, her lips accidentally connected with his. She was about to apologize, but to do that…she needed to move her lips. Gaara assumed this was a kiss and reacted instinctively.

"I'm sorry. You are just so slipper-" Suki didn't get to finish that sentence.

It was too much for Gaara to resist at this point. She'd been sliding all over him for the better part of the last five minutes. Her scent, the way she looked, how good she felt against him, and her lips against him were just too much for him to resist. So he kissed her.

Suki gasps into the kiss. The red head was working purely on instinct though. She tasted like red wine, he decided. Her lips were so soft against his. Soft and warm. He wanted more and decided to seize the opportunity that her gasp presented him with, to deepens the kiss and add his tongue.

Suki moans into the kiss and responds in kind, when she felt him deepen it. He tasted like strawberries and cream. Maybe it was because he was a red head? His lips were warm and rough. But she liked that hint of roughness. Gaara wasn't shy about exploring every corner of her mouth. It didn't take long for the red head to flip them, so that he was on top.

"Wow." He says and looks down at her.

Gaara couldn't help but agree. Now he knew that attraction was mutual. That meant they were both in really big trouble. There was no way, if this continued any further that this wouldn't have enormous political implications.

"Yeah. We are both in really big trouble." She muses and looks up at him with ruby red eyes, brushing the bangs out of his eyes.

He knew she was right. If he was smart, Gaara would just forget they forget the whole thing. But then he looked down at her gorgeous eyes and he knew he was a goner.

"Yes, we are. But fuck it. We are both adults and can make our own decisions. They'll just have to learn to respect that." He says.

"Mhm, I agree. Kiss me again?" She asks and Gaara had no problem doing exactly that.

Both ninjas knew that this was only the beginning of what was sure to be a political firestorm. Neither cared at the moment though. They were far too enamored with each other. They'd deal with the consequences later.


	8. Chapter 8

We're the Same

 **Author's Note:** Thanks for the reviews. That was a lot for an uncommon pairing. I hope you guys like this chapter. Sorry this one is a bit late. I got sidetracked by some other stories, but never fear. Unless I remove a story, I'm always coming back to it sooner or later.

 **Chapter Notation:** Suki's nightmare is in italics. **SKIP IF SENSITIVE**. Nothing too graphic, but it's obviously enough to shake her up. I debated if I wanted to add this scene or not. So far this has been a pretty light hearted story, but I decided to keep it. **Don't worry. I only write happy endings.** This also gives Gaara a chance to try to comfort her. Oh and there will be at least one lemon in this story, maybe more eventually. ^.^

Chapter Eight

About an hour later, Gaara had discovered something about himself. He really liked kissing. Kissing was a glorious experience actually. It was almost indescribably good.

Vaguely, he wondered if it always felt that way or if it was just a wondrous experience because he was with Suki. He decided it was likely the latter.

"Guess it's true what they say about red heads. You are rather feisty." Suki notes with amusement as she looks up at him through the ruby red orbs of the Sharingan.

"Is that a good thing? Suki, your Sharingan is on." He replies with some alarm.

She tries not to blush. Suki Uchiha really did. The female ninja wasn't sure if she was successful though. That was embarrassing. She bites her lower lip and debates about whether or not she should explain that little quirk of biology.

"In this case, it's a very good thing. Don't worry about my Sharingan." The sultry brunette tells him.

She smiles. One nice thing about Gaara is that he didn't pry. The red head seemed content to let the matter drop because he didn't press her further on the Sharingan question.

"I think we should have done that sooner." Gaara muses.

"Mhm. You are a really good kisser. I should probably get Nala some catnip. Do Sand Cats like catnip?" She wonders out loud.

Gaara rubs the back of his head sheepishly. Nala loved catnip. She loved it a little too much actually.

"She loves catnip, but I love my home in one piece more." He replies.

"Oh. Maybe just some milk then. That might be better." Suki muses and Gaara nods his head in agreement.

There was an awkward silence that followed. Neither seemed to know what to say at this point. Obviously the physical attraction was mutual and they had decided to act on it. But how they would deal with the fallout was a subject neither of them seemed exactly sure how to broach.

"Maybe it would be easier for you, if we kept this secret. The Sand is thriving under your leadership. You don't need a scandal to ruin that. Besides, I live in the Leaf anyway. We could easily be discrete." She suggests.

"I don't want to keep it a secret, unless that is what you would prefer. We aren't doing anything wrong. Besides, if we have a public relationship there are certain benefits." He muses.

Gaara didn't really like the idea of a secret relationship. It implied that they should be ashamed of whatever was going on between them. It felt too right for him to feel shame over it. While he was concerned about the potential political fallout, he wasn't ashamed of his attraction to her.

He mentally weighs the pros and cons to both types of relationships, private and public. There was a certain erotic quality to a secret relationship. He couldn't deny that. It would be enjoyable to sneak up behind her and steal a kiss. Certainly it would be fun to whisk her off to some dark corner and be with her. But still, a public relationship would probably scare away the insects. He doubted even the dumbest of drunks would harass the Kazekage's lover.

"Gaara, are you sure about this? It's one thing for me to do it, but you're the Kazekage. I don't want to make things difficult for y-" Suki never got to finish her sentence because Gaara kissed her again.

She quickly returns it and runs her fingers through his blood red hair. Suki moans softly into the kiss and arches into him. They fit together so perfectly. It was like they were made for each other.

The Kazekage knew that she was worried. Suki had good reason to be worried. It was touching that she was so concerned for his welfare and that of the Sand Village as a whole.

That just told him that he was making the right decision. This wasn't just about lust. There was more to their bond than that. (Though lust certainly was currently playing a rather large role.)

"Does that answer your question?" He asks once he breaks the kiss and Suki nods.

"Good." He says with a smile.

"Very. Well I guess after leading the Allied Forces, this shouldn't be too hard for you. People will be shocked at first, but they'll get over it. I hope." She says.

Gaara nods in agreement. He gets off of the couch. Suki looks at him in confusion. Then the sand lifts her up and into his arms. The red head carries her off Bridal Style to a bedroom. She assumed it was his.

"Gaara?" She asks uncertainly.

"I slept much better the night that I was at your house. I believe it was because I was so close to you." He explains.

Suki shakes her head in amusement. Only Gaara could carry someone Bridal Style to a bedroom and have innocent intentions. It was amazing really.

"Did you just try to imply that you view me as a teddy bear?" She asks and her eyes dance with laughter.

"No. Not exactly. Though there is this lingerie item that is referred to as a teddy that I think would look rather nice on you, now that you bring it up. I view you more as a dream catcher." He states.

"Well maybe if you are a good Kazekage, I might buy one and model it just for you. Are you going to put me down now?" Suki inquires.

Gaara looks a little embarrassed at having forgotten to put her down. He gently sets her onto the bed as if he was afraid he was going to accidentally break her. He perks up considerably once he realized that she was potentially offering to model some sexy lingerie for him.

"Of course." He mumbles and soon lays on the bed next to her.

She surprises him by laying her head on his chest. Gaara smiles and wraps his arms around her, after pulling the blankets over them. He felt her snuggle into him.

He wasn't actually going to call it snuggling out loud of course. He was pretty sure that if he did, Suki would go from sex kitten to fearsome tigress faster than he could blink. The Uchiha likely wouldn't take kindly to having such a tame activity associated with her.

"Good night, Gaara." She says and closes her eyes.

"Good night, Suki." He replies and closes his own eyes, drifting off to sleep almost immediately afterwards.

 **Suki's Dream (Skip is Sensitive)**

 _"Mmm." Suki mumbles in her dream as she curls up closer to the source of that comforting warmth and that gentle caress._

 _"Suki, wake up." She hears someone say and feels a light kiss placed on her shoulder._

 _The touches didn't stop there though. She could feel someone trace their hand along the curve of her hip, squeeze her ass, and lightly massage her breasts. It felt good though. She didn't feel threatened. Suki knew that she should know this voice, but couldn't place it at the moment._

 _"I don't want to. That feels nice." She murmurs._

 _"We are going to miss our appointment, if you don't wake up soon." He says._

 _That aroused Suki's curiosity enough that she opens her eyes. She smiles when she sees Gaara curled up at her side. In her dream, this seemed perfectly normal to wake up next to him, completely naked._

 _"What appointment?" She asks in confusion._

 _"You must still be half asleep, if you are asking that. The ultrasound appointment. We are going to find out if it's a boy or a girl." He states and kisses her forehead._

 _"Boy or a girl?" Suki inquires in confusion and that's when she looked down and noticed that her belly was much larger than usual._

 _"Here you can just wear some of my extra robes. We really should get going." Gaara informs her and drapes her in one of his pristine white robes, leading her off._

 _The dream flashes forward. Suki was in the hospital with Gaara. She had just had the baby. Before she could get a good look at their child, she smelled it. Knock out gas._

 _"You didn't actually think that we were going to let a former demon and someone like YOU raise it, did you? It's already demonspawn, but the baby will grow up to make quite the impressive weapon for the Leaf on the battlefield. Don't worry. We'll take good care of the demon." Someone says._

 **End of Suki's Dream**

That's when she woke up screaming. Instantly, Gaara also wakes up. His eyes scan the room for signs of a threat, he didn't see any. He looks at Suki in confusion.

"Suki, what's wrong?" He demands.

"It was just a dream?" The panicked Uchiha asks and looks around the room, her breathing heavy as if she had just run a marathon.

"You had a nightmare. It's alright." Gaara says, once he realizes what was going on.

It must have been a particularly horrific one. Truthfully, Gaara had a hard time imagining what could possibly evoke such a response from Suki. She had survived horrors that most people could scarcely imagine. For her to cry out like that, was extremely unsettling.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to wake you. It just seemed so real." She mumbles.

"Suki, it's fine. Tell me what happened?" He asks as he wraps his arms around her protectively, nuzzling her neck and inhaling her sweet sent.

She shakes her head. Suki knew that she couldn't tell Gaara. They had just gotten together. He'd think she was insane for dreaming about children already and he might balk, if he realized that her fears were very logical.

The brunette hadn't thought about it before. Their relationship was too new. She hadn't expected them to actually be in one. But there were so many people who would want their child, if they had one. The Sharingan and the sand (was that genetic?) made any child they might have, a powerful weapon.

"Not right now. I don't want to talk about it right now. We should try to get some more sleep." She suggests.

"Suki, whatever it is…you can tell me. You don't have to shoulder what is troubling you alone. You aren't alone anymore." He tells her.

She smiles. Suki bit her lower lip. It was at that moment that it dawned on her that she was either in love with him or falling in love with him. Gaara did really care about her. If she was smart, she'd come up with an excuse and head back to the Leaf Village as fast as her legs could carry her. That way they both wouldn't get hurt.

"I know that I'm not. I really don't deserve you." She whispers.

Gaara blinks. He couldn't believe that she just said that. Suki thought she didn't deserve him? That thought had never occurred to the red head and he was shocked it had entered her mind. He had thought she was skittish because of how the public would react to their relationship, not because she felt unworthy of his love in some way.

"Suki, we've both done things in the past that we regret. It doesn't matter now. We aren't the same people we were back then. I used to kill to prove my existence. You used to do horrible things for revenge. None of that matters anymore. We've changed. So I don't want to hear you say anything like that again." The Kazekage practically orders her.

"It's not just that. They won't let it happen, Gaara. You know they won't." She whispers and the red head notes with alarm that her cheek was glistening slightly.

Was she crying? He was almost certain that she was silently crying. He grabs her chin in his hand and kisses her.

Suki kisses back. The taste of his kiss soothed her in a way. When he held her like that, it was easy to forget the reality of the world.

"You are going to tell me what you dreamed about. What scared you so much? This really isn't like you. I don't believe I've ever seen you so frightened before and that includes during the War." The red head says.

"Gaara, I'm not a Sand Villager. That Kazekage tone won't work on me." She replies, desperately trying to change the subject.

"You could be." Gaara states simply and he mentally curses himself for doing so.

It had just slipped out. He knew that he shouldn't have said that. Their relationship wasn't even a day old and he was suggesting she leave the village of her birth to be with him? Gaara was a novice when it came to romantic relationships, but he knew that was asking too much from someone who he had only exchanged a few soul shattering kisses with.

"You want me to move here?" She asks in shock.

"I'd be lying if I said the thought didn't appeal to me, but I'm not foolish enough to expect you to move here. The Leaf is village you were born into. You have a history here. You're a stranger here. You don't have move here right away, if you don't want to. But if things work out between us, I would like it very much. You aren't happy in the Leaf. Anyone can see that." He says in a rush.

"I guess it only makes sense. I can't exactly expect you to move to the Leaf. You are Kazekage. It'd be annoying to have to go back and forth every time we wanted to see each other. I really hadn't thought that far ahead." She admits with a blush.

Suki mentally kicked herself for her lack of foresight. If they were truly going to be together, she would have to move to the Sand. Maybe not today or even in the next couple years, but eventually.

"That is why I am a Kage and you are not." He notes with amusement.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Suki demands.

"That I tend to look at the bigger picture and you are more of a detail person. You focus on one or two trees, I have to look at the entire forest. It's not a bad thing. There are strengths and weaknesses to each viewpoint." He assures her.

Suki settles down once it was clear that Gaara wasn't actually insulting her. She felt a little guilty. The brunette should have known better. Her…well whatever Gaara was to her…didn't go around insulting people for no reason.

"That's true." She concedes.

"So are you going to let me see what tree caused you to react like that?" He asks again

"You will think that I'm insane." She says simply and looks out the window.

Gaara shakes his head. He wouldn't think Suki was insane because of a dream. It was truthfully amazing, how intact her sanity was after everything.

"Sanity is rather relative when you are talking about ninjas. I am listening. Tell me." He urges her gently.

"In my dream, I was pregnant. I had baby, but it was kidnapped." The last Uchiha admits.

The red head blinks. He didn't know what he had been expecting, but that certainly wasn't it. He supposed he should have seen it coming though. She had lost her family once, it was only natural that she'd be worried about losing her second family.

"You aren't insane. You never have been. That's a perfectly rational fear. There will always be those who would love to get their hands on a child with the potential to activate the Sharingan. Though, you don't have to worry. You're safe here." Gaara assures her.

"I'm surprised you aren't running in the other direction. We've only kissed and I am already bringing up the topic of children." She mutters, trying to hide her fear with her trademark sassiness.

He shakes his head. Gaara never would have imagined that Suki would even consider being with him, let alone that she might want children with him. Though he mentally kicked himself for not considering the possibility. Clearly, if Suki was going to get in a relationship, eventually she was going to want children.

"Quite honestly, I never really thought about it before." He admits and holds her closely.

"You never really thought about what before?" The brunette asks in confusion.

"I never really thought about having children before. For a good chunk of my life, I was viewed as a monster. All I could think about was killing for the most part. No one wants to have a child with a monster. Once I had my bloodlust under control, the War came. So there was precious little time to think about such things. After the War was over, I was very busy with recovery efforts. So I never really had the time or inclination to give the topic serious consideration before." He explains.

Suki blinks. The brunette bit her lower lip hard. She didn't know how to respond to that. Gaara wasn't exactly saying that he didn't want children, but he wasn't saying yes either.

"Oh. I see. Well that makes sense." She replies.

The Kazekage realizes he might have dropped the ball with that answer. It was an honest answer, but likely not a particularly reassuring one to someone like Suki. For her, family was everything. If he didn't want kids, that would likely be what Naruto called a "deal breaker."

The red head didn't want that to happen. He cocks his head to the side as he considers what to say next. Suki clearly wanted children. He wanted Suki. Gaara enjoyed kissing her. So he imagined he'd really like the process siring children. He already managed an entire village. How hard could a few children really be?

"I would never lie to you. I was just explaining myself. I suppose it does appeal to me. It would make you happy, which is something I want to do. I enjoy being close to you. To have children together, we would have to be very close." He says with a smile and kisses her cheek.

Suki snuggles into his arms and makes a small sound of amusement. Gaara was saying it tactfully, but she got the translation. _"You want kids. I want to make you happy and sex sounds fun. So I am in theory, open to the idea."_

"Mhm. VERY close. Close enough that I'd wear that teddy for you." She offers.

"You know, I suddenly find myself rather fond of children…" He replies with a bright smile at the thought of the sultry brunette in skimpy lingerie.

Elsewhere in the Sand, Kankuro paces. He didn't know what to do. His brother was at least in lust, possibly love with Suki Uchiha. It was like he was a Masochist or something. Everywhere that woman went, a trail of bodies was sure to follow.

"She's not insane though. Maybe if I try to talk to her about it, I'll have better luck with her than Gaara." He mutters to himself.

Gaara might have feelings for Suki, but that didn't necessarily mean they were returned. Though Kankuro suspected to some degree, the Uchiha did feel something for Gaara. The brunette struck him as someone who hated to have their personal space invaded and she had been standing awfully close to Gaara earlier.

She was a genius though. Obviously, she'd understand the enormous political implications of her getting involved with a Kage. She had attacked the Kage Summit, for fucksake! That wouldn't look good.

"I'll just have to try to talk to her then." He mutters and heads off towards her apartment.

He frowns a few minutes later, when he realized nobody was there. Suki must have gone out. But where would she have gone.

Something in the pit of his stomach, told him that he knew the answer. Kankuro sighs and flits off to Gaara's home. He prayed that he was wrong. He really did. Hopefully, his little brother wouldn't be that reckless.

"You've got to be kidding me." He mutters once he was inside the house and opened the door of Gaara's room.

Suki and Gaara were sitting on the bed. The Uchiha was wrapped rather snugly in Gaara's arms. He wasn't sure what they were talking about exactly, but it sounded like it was probably a case of lovers whispering sweet nothings to each other.

Suki's eyes widen when she sees Kankuro standing in the doorway. Gaara's eyes narrow in annoyance. He didn't particularly care for it. It felt like Kankuro was the father who had just caught his son sneaking a girl into his room.

"Kankuro, I am disappointed. I would have thought you would have had the manners to knock before so rudely entering my room." He practically growls at him.

"Yeah. Sorry about that. I went to find Suki. She wasn't at her place. I had a feeling she might be here somewhere. Looks like I was right. Are you two insane?!" He demands.

Gaara gives Kankuro a dirty look. Yes, he didn't care for it in the slightest. The Kazekage wasn't doing anything wrong in his mind. If he was just a regular villager, his brother wouldn't be looking at him so disapprovingly. He'd be shocked, yes. But he wouldn't try to talk Gaara out of his relationship with the dark beauty, who was currently in his arms.

"No, we are not. Our relationship has no impact on this village's safety or alliance with the Leaf. You are not to tell anyone about it. We will make the announcement, when we are good and ready. As my brother, I hope you will be happy for me. If you can not be happy for me, then as your Kazekage, I order you to keep your mouth shut." He snaps at him.

"Gaara, I don't want to ruin your relationship with your brother. Maybe, I should leave for now. I'll see you later. You two should probably talk." Suki says as she tries to wiggle out of the red head's arms.

Gaara sighs. He steals a quick kiss from the brunette and then lets her slip out. Damn Kankuro. Just when they were making progress. Really, good progress actually.

"Alright." The Kazekage says, rising to his feet.

Suki nods. The last Uchiha flits off. Kankuro sighs. Yeah, that could have gone better.

"Gaara, you know that this is playing with fire." He warns him.

"I'm aware of that, but the rewards are worth the risks. She's right. I don't want our relationship to be ruined because I'm with her. We should talk about this." The Kazekage says and Kankuro nods in agreement, though he definitely wasn't looking forward to this particular conversation.


	9. Chapter 9

We're the Same

 **Author's Note:** Thanks for the reviews. I know that I haven't updated this one in awhile. I got caught up with some of my other stories. Unless I remove story completely, assume that it's going to be updated eventually. Anyway, I hope you all enjoy this chapter.

Chapter Nine

"Gaara, you know that I care about you. We are brothers. That's why I'm worried about you. I don't want you to get hurt." Kankuro says.

The red head sighs and nods. He knew that Kankuro was just trying to protect him. The Kazekage was in love, but he wasn't stupid. There were going to be many people who would object to his relationship with Suki.

Was that going top him from pursuing her? No. It was not, but he recognized reality. The political implications of such a relationship alone were intimidating to say the least.

"I know that you care about me. That's why you should be happy that I have found someone. I know that Suki is an unconventional choice for a consort, but we are the same. We understand each other in a way that most people don't. Besides, she wants to have children with me. This isn't just some flirtation." He states.

Kankuro blinks. _"Besides, she wants to have children with me."_ He couldn't believe that Gaara had just said that.

Suki fucking Uchiha wanted to be a mommy? The very idea was laughable. He knew that she wanted to restore her Clan, but he couldn't wrap his head around the idea. It was impossible to picture the fearsome ninja rocking a baby in her arms.

"Gaara, I am happy for you. This at least means that you are capable of feeling a romantic attraction towards someone. That's good. That's normal. It's healthy, but unconventional is putting it mildly." He begins.

The Kage sighs. This was going to get very irritating. Logically, he knew that Kankuro was right. But at the moment, logic could be damned.

"Good. I'm glad you are happy for me in the abstract. I hope that someday you will approve of my choice. Either way, this is my decision. Not yours. Not the Sand's. Mine." Gaara says firmly.

In a weird way, that was oddly touching. Gaara wasn't afraid to stand up for her. His brother was wiling to stand up for his lover. Well Kankuro wasn't entirely certain they were actually lovers, but decided to just call her that for simplicity's sake.

Mostly though, it was alarming. Gaara was really going to go through with this. The red head was determined to have some sort of romantic relationship with a former S Class Criminal. He was playing with fire and they both damn well knew it.

"I know Gaara, but please just think about this. I don't doubt that she said that she wants to have children with you. From her perspective, having a child by a Kage is a smart decision. It offers her and her children political protection. I can't blame her for wanting the extra insurance, considering what happened to her family. But this won't end well. You know it won't." The puppet master pleads.

"Well I suppose there is nothing more to say. We have both expressed our thoughts on the matter rather clearly." The Kazekage replies.

Damn it. This wasn't going the way he had hoped. He was going to need to speak with Suki. Maybe she would at least see reason.

"I guess not. You know that I'm only saying this because I worry about you, right?" He asks.

"I know that. That's why I didn't Sand Coffin you. You are my brother and I love you, but I also love her. I never thought that I'd actually say that. I didn't think that it was possible for me to feel this way about someone, but I do." The youngest Sand Sibling states.

Kankuro sighs. Fuck. How was he supposed to argue with that declaration, without feeling like a complete jerk? His brother actually thought he was in love with Suki. This was spiraling out of control and rapidly.

"Well if you ever want to talk, you know where you can find me." He says and heads off.

Gaara smacks his forehead. He leaves the room and goes to find Suki. Luckily, her chakra signature was rather distinctive and he was able to find her easily enough. She was back in her apartment. He heads inside.

Her door was locked. Really that was more for show than anything. A locked door wouldn't keep any ninja worth their salt out. He forms a key out of his sand and open it.

"That was faster than expected. So did he convince you to break up with me?" Suki asks.

"It would take a lot more than that for me to leave you. We discussed things. I know that he isn't particularly pleased with me at the moment, but that can't be helped." The red head says and walks over to her.

She smiles and wraps her arms around him. If Kankuro wasn't happy with how the talk went, that could only be good for her. She couldn't believe that Gaara wanted to be with her enough to argue with his own brother about the matter.

"I doubt that he'll be the only one to raise objections." She whispers.

"That's likely true, but there's nothing we can about it. Are you certain that you still want to be with me? Things are slowly starting to settle for you in the Leaf. This will unsettle them." The Kazekage says.

She nods. Suki brushes her lips against Gaara's. She didn't mind the chaos that came from being with him. The last Uchiha was more worried about the type of chaos he would have to endure because he chose to be with her.

The red head kisses back happily. It was easy to forget everything when she was this close. Her very presence was memorizing. It was as if the outside world just ceased to exist in moments like this.

"If I wanted a settled life, I wouldn't have become a ninja. If you still want me, I can write Naruto. He could arrange the transfer." She says.

"You'd really be willing to transfer just like that?" He asks.

Suki nods. Other than Naruto and her Clan's burial grounds, there was nothing to tie her to the Leaf Village. It would be safe in Naruto's hands. Itachi could rest easily with that knowledge.

"Naruto can always visit or write me whenever he wants. There's not much left for me in that village. I like it here better, with you." She admits.

"Alright. We'll have to get in contact with him and at some point make the official announcement. The villagers are going to think I'm mad. They heard about the bar incident and thought we were already lovers. So I had to speak to them about that." The red head confesses.

Suki blinks. No wonder everyone had looked at her that way when she arrived. Half of them probably had thought she was already sharing Gaara's bed. Well she supposed it didn't matter now.

"Is there anything else that I should know about?" She asks.

"I find the idea of stockings on a woman rather erotic?" The Kazekage inquires cautiously.

Suki shakes her head in amusement at that confession. Well she could indulge that kink. It was rather harmless. Besides, she had a Clan to restore and if that made him more open to the idea, why not?

"I can work with that. I'll start on a letter right now." She says with a smile and Gaara nods in agreement.

A few days later, Naruto blinks. He had received two letters. One was from Gaara and the other was from Suki. He nervously opens them. He starts with Gaara's.

 **Dear Naruto,**

 **Suki would like to transfer to the Sand Village as soon as possible. She is happier here. You of course are always welcome to come and visit her anytime you like. I really think that this will provide her with a chance to start over. Please consider approving the request.**

 **Your Friend, Gaara.**

Naruto blinks. Suki wanted to transfer to the Sand Village and Gaara was okay with that. He knew that they were getting along well, but this was far more than he expected.

The blonde shakes his head. He was curious to see what Suki's take on things would be. Gaara had always been more…polite than the feisty Uchiha. He cautiously opens her letter.

 **Dear Loser,**

 **Gaara has agreed to approve my transfer to the Sand Village, if you do. I like it here. I just don't fit in the Leaf anymore. It's hard to start over when everywhere I look, I'm constantly reminded of the past.**

 **Don't give me the kicked puppy look. I'm not going to deal with any waterworks. You can still come and visit me whenever you like and this way, I'm less likely to go on a rampage. You know how annoying our fellow Leaf Villagers can get.**

 **Suki.**

"Yeah. That sounds like her alright." Naruto says with a laugh.

He frowns. The blonde would miss her. Suki was like a sister to him, but he couldn't argue with the logic. No matter how much he wanted to deny it, at least half of the village would never give the last Uchiha a real chance to redeem herself.

With a large sigh, he takes out the transfer papers. Suki was his friend. Her happiness came first. He'd deal with the fall out for approving the transfer later.

"Yeah, this isn't going to be fun." He mutters to himself as he stamps. APPROVED on the transfer request.

Love was more important than political inconvenience. The boisterous ninja knew that he was going to be dealing with one big political headache soon. Once word got out that he had transferred Suki, all Hell would break loose. Still he didn't care. He wanted his friends to be happy and it looked like they had found their happiness with each other.

He knew that Gaara protested too much. The blonde didn't think either of them were lying in their letters, but they weren't telling the whole truth either. Clearly, something big had happened. Maybe they were officially together now?

"Hopefully, they know what they are doing." He whispers to himself.

He looks around his office until he came upon an old photo of Team Seven. He laughs when he saw it. Suki and him were glaring at each other. It was a shame really.

Suki had only glimpses of a "normal" childhood while on Team Seven. Well as normal as ninja childhoods could get anyway. The last Uchiha had never even had a crush before, as far as he could tell. Things apparently had changed and quickly though.

"I wonder how that works? Suki is so bossy, but Gaara is the Kazekage. He's used to being in charge. I bet they fight over everything, even where they want to eat." He muses to himself.

Elsewhere in the Leaf, Sakura gets called in by the Council. The pink haired woman blinks as she walks inside. She had no idea what they could possibly want from her.

"Ah thank you for coming." One of the council members greets her.

"You're welcome. I am confused. What is it that you needed to talk to me about?" The medic asks, deciding it was best to cut straight to the point.

The councilmen and councilwoman look at each other uncomfortably. That was Sakura's first real clue that something serious was going on. Something sketchy most likely.

"We are aware that you were Suki Uchiha's teammate on Team Seven. Thus we believe you have a relatively close relationship with her. Is this assumption correct?" The councilwoman asks.

"Yeah. I guess so. Well as close as she lets anyone who isn't Naruto near her." Sakura replies with a shrug.

"Good. As you are aware, she has been assigned to a mission in the Sand Village. There have been certain rumors regarding her relationship with the Kazekage. We have reason to believe that they might be involved in a romantic relationship. Do you know anything that would confirm or disprove this?" She continues.

Sakura blinks. That was the last thing that she expected. The Council was meddling with Suki's love life. Oh this wouldn't end well.

"Those were just rumors. I wouldn't put much stock in them. Even if they were true, I fail to see why that would concern you. She's proven herself to be a loyal ninja for the Leaf Village since her return." The medic replies coldly.

The Council sigh. Sakura could almost hear what was going on in their heads. They thought she was going to be a difficult child. Too bad. She wasn't going to betray her teammate by giving them away personal information like that. It was none of their business.

"Sakura, you are a medic. I'm certain that you realize the Sharingan is genetic. Suki is the last Uchiha. That means that any relationship she is involved with, involves our village's security. This is especially true when it comes to her getting involved with a Kage!" A councilman exclaims.

"It's still none of your business. This is Suki's life you are talking about. What do you expect her to seek your approval before beginning any romantic relationship?! That's insane." Sakura growls at them.

The Council look at each other. This was not going the way they had hoped. Sakura was a medic. She was supposed to be reasonable. Oh well. It was time to explain how things really were to her.

"What do you think will happen if she involves herself with the Kazekage and it ends badly? Do you not think that will sour relations between the Leaf and Sand? What if their relationship goes well and they have a child? The Sand would have an equally strong claim to such a child. The future of the Uchiha Clan and thus possibly control over one of our strongest bloodlines will be partially in their hands!" They shout at her.

"I understand your concern, but she's her own person. She's not your slave or your incubator. I'm leaving. I'm not going to listen to this. I hope for your sake that Naruto doesn't find out what you have been talking about behind closed doors." She snarls at them and heads off.

Meanwhile back in the Sand, Gaara smiles as he watches Suki head out of the Academy. One of the students said something to her. A small girl. Gaara figured she had only enrolled that year.

It didn't take a genius to realize what the young student had asked the Uchiha. Suki drops to one knee and suddenly her Sharingan activates. Clearly, the kid had wanted to see it.

"PRETTY!" The girl exclaims and Suki smiles.

He found himself biting back a laugh. The Academy students looked so awestruck. He supposed he understood on some level. He had first faced it during the Chunin exams. He had associated it with battle at first. So he hadn't really appreciated it much from an atheistically perspective.

"Yes, it is. Suki, do you have your report ready?" Gaara agrees as he walks over to them.

"Mhm. I'll see you all tomorrow." The raven haired ninja says and heads off with Gaara.

Soon enough they arrive back in his office. Gaara uses his sand to lock the door behind them. He quickly pushes her against the wall and kisses her.

The red head smiles when he felt her hands wrap around his neck. The Uchiha kisses back and runs her fingers through his hair. He felt himself almost purring in response.

"Mmm I have to admit, filing reports has never been more enjoyable." She whispers after breaking the kiss.

"I feel the same way. In all seriousness, how did it go at the Academy?" The Kazekage asks.

"Well enough. I think the kids are getting used to me. The instructors seem moderately less terrified of me. So I guess that's progress." She muses.

It was the truth. Maybe people were starting to get used to her. The Sand Village was a more…practical lot than the Leaf. More or less, they seemed to be operating under one assumption. If their Kazekage wasn't concerned about her presence, then she wasn't a threat.

They weren't stupid though. There was still an underlying weariness to most of the adults. She couldn't blame them for that. It was just smart not to let your guard down when you were dealing with a powerful ninja.

"That's good news, but I was speaking more about the curriculum." He chides her gently.

"Oh. The actual lessons are fine. Once you get them separated by age, they'll be much more appropriate." Suki replies and Gaara nods.

Gaara nods. That was good news. At least their Academy was mostly modern. They just had to get more instructors.

He couldn't help but think about her with that kid. The red head tries to imagine what their child would be like. Would it be a girl or a boy? What features of his, if any, would they get? Would they be able to use the Sand? Perhaps they would be more like Suki when it came to their abilities.

"Gaara, you are thinking rather loudly. What's on your mind?" She asks.

"A lot of things. Though I think it might be too early to mention them. I was just…speculating." He says evasively.

Suki raises an eyebrow. Oh he thought he was going to dodge? No. That wasn't going to happen. If she had to fight dirty, she would.

"Mmm well you can speculate with me." She says and nibbles on his ear.

Gaara shivers. The feeling of her teeth against her skin in a light bite was highly erotic to him. He didn't know why this was the case. It just was. It was a fact that Suki didn't hesitate to exploit.

"Suki, that's not fair and you know it." He groans.

"Mmm I'm a ninja. If you want someone who cares about fair, you should have chosen a civilian. Are you going to tell me now?" She asks.

He shakes his head. No. It probably wasn't a good idea to tell her yet. It was rather presumptuous. She wanted children, but he doubted that she was planning on having them that soon. Her transfer hadn't even been process yet (and that was assuming that Naruto didn't fight them on it.)

"That's true. Still I think that this is a topic would be better for us to discuss later on." He insists.

The Uchiha looks at him intently. Yes, Gaara was going to be difficult. Alright. She didn't mind fighting dirty, if she had to.

She pushes him onto his desk and straddles his waist. The shocked look that he gave her was absolutely priceless. Idly, she wishes she had a camera on her. That was a moment that should be captured.

"Mmm Gaara, just tell me. We both know you are going to eventually. You don't have to play so hard to get. Not when I can make you hard in another, far more enjoyable way." She purrs seductively at him.  
The Kazekage swallows hard. Damn. That really should be illegal. Her voice should be classified as a Forbidden Jutsu when she used it like that. How the was he supposed to resist that?!

"Alright. It was just that I was thinking about what you said earlier." He begins hesitantly.

"What I said about what?" The Uchiha continues as she places soft kisses along his neck.

She smirks when she felt him shiver. Gaara was extremely sensitive to touch. It was a little quirk that she greatly enjoyed using to her advantage.

"About us having children. When I saw you with the Academy students, I couldn't help but ponder the matter further." He admits.

That stops Suki's playful mood. Gaara almost immediately regretted mentioning it. The last Uchiha seemed almost afraid of his answer.

"And what did you decide?" She asks.

"I didn't decide anything. Mostly I was musing on things such as gender, physical appearance, and abilities." He tells her.

"So you aren't…having second thoughts?" The raven haired ninja inquires nervously and Gaara shakes his head.

He caresses her cheek. It sweet really. He never thought that anyone would see him as a lover, let alone as a potential father for their children. She was terrified that he'd say no.

"No. I'm not having second thoughts. I'm still rather shocked that you would want me to father your children, but it's not that I don't want to." The red head tries to reassure her.

Suki relaxes a bit. She lets out a quiet sigh of relief and leans into his touch. Gaara wasn't saying no. He was actually seriously thinking about it. Thinking about it seriously enough to wonder if they'd have boys, girls, or both. That was a good sign.

"Our children." She corrects him and Gaara smiles.

"Yes, ours. Though I imagine things would go much more smoothly, if your transfer is approved before we start seriously trying to have a family. That and we'll have to make our involvement public." The Kazekage points out.

The other ninja nods in agreement. He had a point. It'd be better if she was officially a Sand Villager, before they had a family.

"That's true. I love you." She says and snuggles into his arms.

"I love you too." The Kage replies and holds her closely, running his hands up and down the length of her back in a gentle caress.

That's when the door opened. It was Baki. Baki coughs to get their attention and the young couple blushes.

"I didn't realize that you had company, Lord Kazekage. I just wanted to inform you that your mail had arrived." He says and awkwardly hands him the letter.

"It's alright. Thank you, Baki. Is that all?" Gaara asks and Suki was idly impressed by how composed he was considering that Baki had caught them red-handed.

"Yes, that's everything." He says and to his credit leaves, without questioning them.

Suki sighs in relief. That never would have happened in the Leaf. They would have faced an immediate interrogation. Thankfully, Sand Villagers tended to respect your privacy more than Leaf Villagers.

"It's from Naruto." Gaara informs her and opens the letter quickly.

 **Dear Gaara,**

 **Hey, can you share this with Suki? It just seems easier to send one letter rather than two. You were both asking basically the same thing. Though you did ask it much more nicely than the Ice Princess.**

 **Anyway, I thought about it. I'll approve the transfer. I'll get some flack for it. But I'd rather have her be happy in the Sand, than sad in the Leaf. So I approved it. You just need to finish processing it.**

 **Oh and Suki, you better not give Gaara a hard time. He's putting a lot on the line for you. You better be nice!**

 **Love, Naruto.**

"Well that was easier than expected." Suki says with a smile.

"Yes. Thankfully, he's a good friend. He cares more about your happiness than the political repercussions of indulging us." The red head says and Suki nods in agreement.

She didn't know what she would have done, if he had said no. Suki probably would have gone back to the Leaf and had to fight him. It wasn't a thought that she relished, but she would have done it. Thankfully, Naruto was going to approve the transfer. Now she and Gaara could officially be together.


	10. Chapter 10

We're the Same

 **Author's Note:** Thanks for the reviews. I treasure them all as this is a unconventional pairing. I hope you all enjoy this chapter.

 **Chapter Notation:** This chapter is mostly lemon. If you prefer a story with no lemons, you should probably skip this chapter. The actual lemonade has warnings before and after it though. Lemonade is necessary because without it, we don't get any mini Uchihas.

Chapter 10

A few days later, Gaara discovered something about himself. He apparently had a uniform fetish. Well maybe he just had a Suki fetish and she just happened to be in the uniform.

There was just something incredibly erotic about watching her in her Sand uniform. Maybe he was just being possessive. He was the Kazekage and she was wearing _**HIS**_ village's uniform. In a way, he had marked her almost as much as Orochimaru had.

"How does it look?" Suki asks as she spins around.

"It flatters you in an exceptional fashion." The red head says and admires the firm curve of her backside as she spins around.

He most certainly was not lying when he said that. Gaara had never given much thought to the Sand's uniform outside of whether or not it was practical, but this was Suki. The Kazekage was positive that she could find a way to make a potato sack look alluring.

Suki smiles. She saunters over to him and wraps her arms around his neck. The raven haired ninja leans closely and whispers into his ear.

"Glad you think so. I agree. I agree so much that I'm not wearing anything underneath it." She purrs at him seductively.

At THAT bombshell, Gaara suddenly wonders how strong his desk was. Hmm maybe he should lock the door and cast a soundproofing jutsu. Suki wanted to restore her Clan anyway…

"You know that they were right about you. You really are evil. An evil tease." He mutters.

"You like it though. If you wanted a good girl, you would have gone with Matsuri." She counters.

Gaara tilts his head in confusion. What did Matsuri have to do with any of this? Was Suki actually jealous of the brunette?

"What does she have to do with this? Are you jealous?" He asks in disbelief.

"Mmm Gaara. I'm not an idiot. I see how she looks at you. I guess you've never noticed though." Suki says as she pushes him onto his chair and straddles his lap.

The red head blinks. Matsuri wanted him? He had just thought that she had a case of hero worship because he was the Kazekage. He didn't think she was infatuated with him.

"I have no interest in her. Your jealousy is unfounded. Though I must admit that it is touching that you care enough to be jealous." He muses.

"I know that it's unfounded." Suki says as she kisses him and breaks it by tugging on his lower lip.

Gaara returns the kiss and groans. He would never fully be able to articulate how much he enjoyed her kisses. Her touch. It was addictive.

"Good. I love you. You know that." Gaara reminds her and runs his fingers through her long dark tresses.

"I know. I love you too." Suki replies and places a soft trail of kisses along his neck, occasionally nipping.

The Kazekage groans and moves to slide off her vest. Suki smirks at this response. She decides to help him. She reaches behind her back to start taking off her top.

 **Warning Lemon**

Gaara's eyes widen once Suki was completely topless. He had never seen a woman's bare breasts in person before. Of course, he had seen pictures. (Anyone who said that they hadn't explored adult entertainment, was a liar in his mind.) But that was a far cry from the real thing.

"I think you look beautiful in your new uniform. But I enjoy the sight of you out of it, even more." He admits.

"That's good. Are you just going to stare all day though?" She purrs seductively into his ear.

Gaara was honestly stunned. He hadn't realized that touching was an option. He mentally slaps himself. Suki wouldn't be sitting half naked in his lap, if she wasn't making an offer.

"A view as glorious as that should be admired for a few moments at least." He tells her and captures Suki's lips with his own.

The red head caresses her ample breasts. Idly, he noted that those creamy large breasts were crowned by rosy pink nipples. For some reason that thought struck him as comical. Pink wasn't a color that he generally associated with his sultry almost lover.

Suki smiles into the kiss and arches into his touch. She didn't know that it could feel that good just to feel someone else's hands against breasts like that. Gaara was a little shy, but that was alright. She didn't mind guiding him a little, especially when he unwittingly said something that seductive.

"I think you are sucking up to me because you are hoping I'll return the favor." She murmurs after breaking the kiss.

Gaara blinks. That was an option?! Suki shakes her head in amusement at the wide eyed look on his face. It was cute. She arches in his lap and wiggles out of her pants. So now she was sitting completely naked in his arms.

Despite him being the only one with any clothes on, she felt completely in control of the situation. There was something really erotic about knowing that she currently had one of the Kage's completely at her mercy. She moans when she felt him get a little bolder with his caresses. Maybe she spoke a little too soon.

"Well that wasn't my intention, but if you are offering…" Gaara replies and smiles when he heard her moan.

Her breasts were so soft and warm. Squishy, yet firm. For some reason, his inner child was rather delighted at this new discovery. He mentally kicked himself for that description. Squishy was not an adjective that should ever be applied to the dark haired goddess that was currently straddling his waist in such a wonderfully wicked fashion.

"Mmm well I suppose that's good to know. Even Kages act like puppies begging for a treat when it comes to getting sucked off." She taunts him.

She knew that she was playing with fire. Gaara was far from arrogant, but he was proud of his title. As he should be, she thought. Provoking him in such a way was a risk, but it was one that she couldn't resist taking.

"Uchiha, I don't beg." Gaara states and surprises himself giving a light smack to her ivory pale backside.

Suki yips in surprise. It didn't hurt. She had been more surprised than anything. Still there was something oddly hot about the fact that he would even dare to do that. Most people would have been too terrified of getting Chidoried to the nuts to attempt to assert dominance over her.

"You could have fooled me with those puppy eyes." She says with a smirk and stretches out in a way that reminded Gaara of one of the lioness he had seen one that was trying to entice one of the pride males into a mating.

He wasn't going to lie. There was something insanely tempting about the way that simple movement accented her breasts, her slender back, the curve of her hips, and her ass. Apparently that little trick worked on humans just as well as male lions, who knew? Well instincts were there for a reason, he supposed.

"It's not a wise idea to provoke a Kage. You seem to have a habit of doing so." He states and has the sand grab her, pulling her away from him and sitting her on his desk.

Gaara quickly strips and approaches her. Suki raises an eyebrow at the use of the sand to move her. She hadn't expected him to actually employ his sand in the bedroom. Though perhaps she should have expected it. It did respond to his will. Instinctive really.

"What can I say? I've never really been that good at respecting authority." Suki says.

She was about to come up with another witty retort when her eyes made the mistake of drifting south. The gourd on his back wasn't the only large gourd he had. Damn. She briefly wondered if they were physically compatible. How was that ever going to fit inside her?

"Yes, I've definitely noticed that." He says and stands in front of her.

Gaara wasn't exactly certain what he should do at this point. Suki apparently didn't have that issue. She reached for his cock as if she already owned it and began stroking him slowly.

"Fuck!" He groans in pleasure and bucks into her seductive touch.

"Mmm I don't think I've ever heard a Kage swear before. That's a filthy mouth you have there for someone in such a _**respectable**_ position." She mocks him and smirks at his reaction.

"I don't think that I've ever met someone who delighted so much in sassing Kages before, but you did raise an interesting point earlier. About begging." He says with a smirk and leans in, kissing her neck.

Suki squirms. That wasn't fair. He knew that wasn't fair. She arches against him and moans. That was a cheap trick!

"Nhh that's fighting dirty." She whimpers in pleasure when she felt his teeth bite down lightly and then lick the slightly bruised skin soothingly, before sucking possessively.

"Perhaps. But judging by that whimper you just made, you like it." He taunts her and flicks his tongue against her nipples experimentally.

Suki gasps and moans. She quickly wraps her legs around his waste and looks at him with ruby red eyes. Gaara was beginning to notice a pattern here…

Sharingan either meant bloodlust or regular lust, it seemed. Good to know. He smirks and lightly sucks on one of her breasts while massaging the other. Suki was soon practically purring and running her fingers through his hair.

That felt nice. He felt all the blood in his body moving south and rapidly. Gaara was certain that he'd never find anything more alluring the sight of those ruby red eyes looking at him while Suki was moaning and completely naked.

"Mmm I can't deny that." She admits as she goes back to stroking him.

It was a rush really. She smirks as she felt him thrust into her hand desperately. He was so responsive. Suki knew that it probably wasn't healthy, but she had a need to be in control. Having the Kazekage literally in the palm of her hand, well that was an addictive feeling really.

He releases her breasts from his mouth and looks at her. Gaara caresses the curve of her ass and slowly starts moving down. He lavished her stomach with kisses, licks, and small love bites.

"You can keep doing that." Suki sighs in pleasure and arches her back in bliss, making her raven locks spill all the way down her back an ethereal fashion.

He smirks. It felt good to know that he could make her make those sounds. The red head also felt rather smug at the knowledge that he was the only one who had touched her this way.

"Lay on the desk." He says.

"Oh the Kazekage voice. That might work on your regular villagers, but it won't work on me." She challenges him.

Gaara was slightly confused by this reaction. She was clearly enjoying their interactions thus far. Why was she resisting him? It almost felt like a challenge.

 _"I want someone who isn't afraid of me. Someone who is strong enough to throw me against a wall and we can make love until we both pass out from exhaustion."_ He remembers her saying.

He supposed in a strange way this was some sort of test. She might feign protests, but really she wanted him to prove that he wouldn't hesitate to take what he wanted.

It was…a bit primal, but then again so was she. She was just like her element. Wild, deadly, and beautiful. It could hurt you. It was usually thought of as a purely destructive element, but that wasn't entirely true. It could also provide light, heat, and cook your food. One just had to know how to handle it. Apparently, she wanted handled.

"Well I asked nicely. Though I suppose you always did prefer doing things the hard way." He mutters and has the sand push her onto the desk.

The red head swiftly crawls on top of her. He positions his arousal by her lips and his mouth by her womanhood. Much like bare breasts, he had never seen a woman's naked lower half before in person. He paused briefly to admire the way her creamy thighs framed the formerly taboo area in such a provocative manner.

"Mmm Gaara, I half expect you to start taking pictures." She says in amusement as she blows hot air against his erection and takes the tip into her mouth.

Gaara was going to reply to that, but then her wicked mouth was suddenly wrapped around his cock. Her fucking wonderfully wicked mouth. He felt himself moan. He didn't know that his body was actually capable of experiencing that much pleasure. It took all his self-control not to just thrust into her hot, wet mouth for more of that feeling.

Suki smirks. She lavishes the sensitive tip with her tongue and sucks lightly. She strokes what wasn't in her mouth before kissing, licking, and grazing her teeth against the sensitive flesh. She felt Gaara jump when she did that, but he also groaned. Yes, he definitely liked it when there was a little danger involved.

"Suki!" He groans and shivers.

He wanted to return the favor. Gaara had a basic idea of how to do that, but knowing it in theory was a lot different than actually doing it. Still he gently licks her womanhood and rubs her clit.

The Kazekage really didn't know how sensitive she was. He had almost no idea where the line between pleasure and pain was in this respect. He felt her moan around his cock and decides he hadn't crossed it yet. He licks harder and faster.

"Yes! Nhh!" She moans and arches against him in pleasure, after releasing him from her mouth.

Gaara smirks. She tasted sweet and he could feel her thighs begin to quiver as she grew more aroused. He rubs her clit more firmly and then watches her orgasm washed over her.

He took that back. There was something even more erotic than those ruby red eyes looking at him while she was naked and moaning. That was Suki in the middle of an orgasm. Glorious was really the only way to describe it.

The way her Sharingan darkened in desire was magnificent. As was the way her back arched and her sinfully sensual moans. Watching her body writhe like that and knowing he was the cause of it, was nothing short of addictive.

"You said something about wanting to be thrown against a wall." Gaara says with a smirk and scoops her up in his arms, carrying her to the nearest wall.

"Mmm you remembered. That's sweet." She whispers and makes a small sound of surprise when he forces her to lean back against the wall and wrap her legs around his waist.

"Sweet wasn't exactly what I had in mind." He tells her and slowly buries himself inside his new lover.

Oral sex had been fantastic, but it could never measure up to this. Gaara didn't even have words to describe the feeling of being inside her. She was so hot, tight, and wet. It was all that he could do not to cum right then and there.

He heard her make a quiet hiss of pain. Suki had always been the sort to suffer with dignity and that apparently extended to losing her virginity. He quickly kisses her, massages her breasts, and teases her clit to distract her from the pain.

"You said you were going to ravish me, you don't have to treat me like I'm made of glass. I won't break." She whispers to him and rolls her hips as if to prove her point.

She gasps and moans when Gaara hit something inside her that felt amazing. This was even better than the feeling of his tongue against her. She arches against the wall and writhes against him.

"You feel so good." He whispers into her ear hotly as he begins claiming her hard and fast against the wall.

It was true. He'd never felt like this before. She felt so fucking good wrapped around his cock. The beautiful moans she was making. The way her eyes were glimmering with desire and even her scent. It was driving him to the brink of insanity. But it was a beautiful insanity. One that he wanted to revisit again and again.

"So do you!" Suki moans as she tries desperately to match his pace.

Gaara might have started out almost reverently, but now it was more like animalistic lust. She loved the way he would slam her right against the wall and feel her right to the brim. It felt so fucking good.

She could feel the wall lightly scrapping against her back, but that only added to her desire. Her lover wanted her and wasn't holding back. She wraps her legs around tighter to encourage him and digs her nails into his back.

That only seemed to arouse him further. He thoroughly buries himself inside her again and again. Every thrust elicited moans of pleasure from each of them. They were soon moving as one and it didn't take them long to spiral over the edge. Both came hard and screaming each other's names.

Gaara slides out of her. He holds her closely and they both try to catch their breathes. The two lovers were currently too enthralled by the afterglow of their lovemaking to do much else.

 **End Lemon**

"You know, I think th-at there is something to this wall fe-tish of yours." He pants out.

"Mmm I t-old you so." She says smugly as she tries to slow her breathing back down to normal.

He shakes his head in amusement and just holds her even closer. Gaara couldn't believe that he had a lover, let alone the lioness that was currently laying rather contentedly in his arms. He never though that he would have this.

Suki was perfectly content to cuddle. Well as much as their current position let her anyway. She didn't know that she could feel that good. Every cell of her body felt alive and so very _satisfied._

"We should probably get dressed and head back to your apartment. We are…a mess. Anyone could tell what we were doing and while that thought certainly has its appeal, I'm not certain it's a good idea to let my villagers know that we had sex in my office." He muses.

"Mhm. We wouldn't want your villagers to know that you were using your office in such deviant activities. It would ruin your reputation as the only professional Kage." She observes with open amusement.

"What about Naruto?" He asks.

"He's anything but professional. I love him like a brother, but you have to admit that. Well if you are being honest anyway." She says as she slowly slides out of his arms and saunters over to grab her clothes.

Gaara admired the view. It was tempting to go for a round two. The red head didn't realize that he could get fully aroused so quickly after climaxing, but she managed it somehow. It was probably the inviting view of her backside and the way her hips swayed as she walked, that did it.

"You really shouldn't tempt me like that. I soundproofed this room and locked the door, but sooner or later someone is going to come looking for me. It would cause quite the scandal, if we were caught in the middle of our lovemaking." He says.

"That's supposed to discourage me, right? Causing a scandal sounds fun, but come on. We should probably get going, when you put it that way." She says and tosses his robes at him.

He shakes his head and walks over to her, after he throws on his robes. Gaara wraps his arms around Suki and teleports them back to her home. Here they would at least have some privacy.

She smiles slyly and leads him to her bedroom. The last Uchiha quickly hops into her bed and gestures for him to join her. The Kazekage takes her up on that generous offer and was soon laying next to her.

"This is definitely a step up from sleeping on the floor of your couch." He admits.

"Mmm I really am sorry about that." She tells him.

"Don't be. It doesn't matter now." Gaara replies and cuddles into his new lover.

Suki smiles and returns the affection. This was nice. Sex and then embracing afterwards. She could get used to this. The actual process of Clan Restoration just became a whole lot more appealing.

"Don't you have any meetings today?" She inquires.

"No. Nothing scheduled. It worked out rather well. It's almost like you intentionally seduced me on a slow day." Gaara informs and Suki laughs.

She lays head on his head. She could hear the fast THUMP THUMP of his heart. The Kazekage's heart was still racing, as she was sure her own was. For once, it wasn't because of fear or anger. It was because of pleasure. That was a new feeling. Outside of the rush of battle, she hadn't had that in a very long time.

"Mmm it worked out perfectly then. I'm glad Naruto approved the transfer. I don't think that I could have bared going back to the Leaf and leaving you after that." She admits.

"I'll take that as a compliment." He says and kisses her.

Suki returns the kiss. Somehow they would manage to deal with the political fallout of their union. There was no way that something that felt this good, this right…could be bad.

"As you should." She whispers after breaking the kiss.

"I love you. If it came down to it, I would have gladly made a lot of trips back and forth. It would have been a challenge coming up with enough suitable excuses to explain it, but I would have managed." Gaara tells her.

"Mmm that's a six day trip, if you count getting to the Leaf and coming back to the Sand. That's a long way to go just for sex." She says with a sly smile.

"Well the sex is incredible and worth the trip, but that wouldn't have been the only reason. I love you. I mean it when I say that. I don't say it lightly." He states and laces her fingers with his own.

Suki smiles. It was rare for her to believe anyone. For most of her life, almost everyone she knew had tried to manipulate her. But she believed it when the Kage told her that he was in love with her. That she didn't doubt for even a second.

"I know. I feel the same way. It's like you said. We're the same. Distance doesn't change that." The last Uchiha says and places an affectionate kiss to his cheek.

It was such an innocent gesture. Compared to what they had just done, it was almost childishly chaste. Still it made Gaara smile nonetheless. They were in love. Nothing was going to change that.


	11. Chapter 11

We're the Same

 **Author's Note:** Thanks for the reviews. Sorry that this one is late. I was just wrapping up a couple other stories and so wanted to focus on them. I hope that you all enjoy this chapter.

 **Chapter Notation:** This takes place two months after the last one.

Chapter 11

"Suki, I believe our relationship just went public." Gaara muses two months later as he reads the newspaper.

"What makes you say that?" His lover asks as she sits in his lap and rests her head on his shoulder.

The red head gestures for her to read the paper. Suki's eyes quickly scan it and she blinks. Well that was one way to break the news, she supposed.

 _ **The Ultimate Power Couple**_

 _ **For years, our Lord Kazekage was said to possess the Ultimate Defense. Well now the Sand Village is home to its very own ultimate power couple. Suki Uchiha and the Lord Kazekage were spotted in a rather heated embrace on the balcony last night.**_

 _ **Rumors have been swirling around for awhile now, especially after the last Uchiha's transfer. But now we can confirm that it appears to be official, judging the passionate kisses that were being exchanged.**_

 _ **Now one is entirely certain when this secret romance started. Still we all know one thing, this is probably going to send a shockwave through the world of ninja politics. How will the other ninja villages react to this? Only time will tell.**_

"I wonder who the spy was." Suki muses.

"I suppose it doesn't really matter. Our relationship will be common knowledge in the Five Nations by the end of the week with a display like that. They even included a picture. That was particularly thoughtful of them." The Kazekage states.

Suki raises an eyebrow. She glances down at the picture. The last Uchiha feels her face heat up slightly. It was a good thing that picture hadn't been snapped five minutes later or everyone would have gotten quite the eyeful. She remembered the night that they made love on the balcony well.

"At least they got our good sides?" She offers.

"I suppose that's true. Well there's nothing we can do, except hold a press conference." He says and kisses her cheek.

The last Uchiha nods her head in agreement. That was true. It was probably best to address this as soon as possible. God only knows what sorts of rumors were already spreading about the nature of their relationship.

"Sounds good to me. How quickly can you put one of those together?" Suki asks her lover.

"I can have it arranged for this evening. The sooner we address this, the better." The Kage states firmly and Suki couldn't help but agree with that assessment.

"Alright." She says and later that night they go to do exactly that.

"ATTENTION!" Gaara bellows out and Suki blinks.

She didn't know that Gaara could be that loud. It was impressive really. It got everyone's attention though.

"It seems that a certain newspaper has published a rather suggestive article about my relationship with Suki Uchiha. I would have preferred it, if the newspaper had been investigating real news and not trying to spy on our private lives. Though there really isn't use in denying it at this point. Suki and I are romantically involved." He says.

Suddenly a roar of questions is heard. Suki couldn't distinguish one from the next. It was almost deafening in its intensity. The normally quiet village was now the scene of utter chaos.

"QUIET! We'll be happy to answer any APPROPRIATE questions one at a time. You are still expected to conduct yourselves as adults, no matter how shocking our relationship may be to any of you." The last Uchiha practically growls at them.

That settles the crowd down. Suki couldn't help but smirk a bit. That was better. Maybe now they would actually get somewhere.

"Our relationship will not impact the relations between the Leaf and our village. Most likely we will have to meet with the other Kages and Daimyos to assure them of this, but none of you have anything to fear." The red head says.

"With all due respect, are you out of your mind? Lord Kazekage, you're lover is a former S Class Criminal!" One of them shouts.

Another Sand Villager smacks the first protestor. He wasn't going to have their Kazekage insulted. Besides, it was a very romantic love story.

"Don't speak to Lord Gaara that way! If he believes the Uchiha has changed her ways, then she has. Besides, Naruto also vouches for her. Are you trying to say that you are smarter than the savior of the world?" He demands.

Suki sighs. Oh boy. This might not end well. Soon enough a flood of "debates" broke out. It was like listening to a stormy sea. The shouts just kept rolling in like violent waves against the beach. She found this ironic because they were in a desert.

"SILENCE! I am your Kazekage. I will protect this village, but I am not going to allow my personal life to be dictated to by the whims of public opinion." The red head thunders at them.

That quickly quiets the crowd once more. Suki kisses his cheek reassuringly and smiles when he laces his fingers with hers. This was about what she expected really, but that didn't make it any easier. Still they had each other and that was what really mattered.

Later that week, the Kage and Daimyo were all at a meeting. Suki was less than impressed by the Daimyos, but she kept that opinion to herself. Now was not the proper time to express such things.

"Well I must admit that you certainly know how to create a splash in the press, Lord Kazekage." The Fire Daimyo begins.

"I assure you that was not our intention. One of the reporters must have happened to see us together on the balcony and foolishly decided that it would make a grand story." He replies.

Naruto glances around the room. It was hard to get a read on what the Daimyo's all thought of this. The Kages for the most part looked rather grim. This might not end well.

"Surely, you both understand that this relationship will cause a panic, this I especially true if you decide to have children. What if the sand is genetic? That combined with a possible Sharingan would create a child that is more powerful than many would be comfortable with." Onoki reasons.

"I'm not sure if the sand is genetic or not. It doesn't matter though. As for children, that is our decision and ours alone." Gaara says in a chillingly polite tone.

Suki was fairly certain that Gaara was imagining Sand Coffining his ally at this point. Damn. She had to do something to salvage this.

"The Sand is a fairly small village. It has always been at a disadvantage because of this. Even if we had children, it would not tip the scales of power significantly. Besides, do you really think that Naruto would have transferred me to the Sand, if he thought that it wasn't safe to do so?" She says, deciding that a logical approach might be the best one.

Mei frowns. Hmm. It was a tough situation. The romantic in her certainly did approve of the idea of two lovers fighting to be together. Still Onoki did raise a valid point.

"Perhaps a compromise can be reached. There is a chakra bracelet that will temporarily cut off her access to chakra if she attacks when it is not self-defense or on the orders of her village. It's very…intricate and measures chemical reactions in the body to make these distinctions. We couldn't in good conscience put it on a child. I would trust the Kazekage, to know if such a drastic measure was necessary." She suggests.

Gaara's eyes narrow at that suggestion. He clearly wasn't pleased with the thought of Suki being treated like a criminal again. The raven haired woman shakes her head and places her hand on his shoulder comfortingly.

"It's fine, Gaara. I'd rather wear the damn bracelet than see a war started over who I take for my lover." She says and sighs, holding out her hand to receive the bracelet.

"It's not right and they know it. Naruto, you can't possibly be agreeing to this!" The red head protests.

Naruto grimaces. He didn't like the idea anymore than Gaara, but it was the best one they had at the moment. The blonde knew what he had to do, but that didn't mean he was going to enjoy it.

"It don't like it either, but Suki is okay with it. Humor them. In time they will see that she's changed. She's not the same person that she used to be before the war. People will get that. Eventually." He promises.

"I can't believe this." The red head hisses.

"You know that it's the right, decision. If you weren't so attached to her, you would see that. If anyone else was in your shoes, you would tell them that such a relationship is ill advised at best." The Raikage says.

Suki blinks She is forced to jump between Gaara and the other Kage, when the red head's sand makes a lunge at the older man. Damn it. The last thing they needed was for Gaara to start attacking other Kages!

"Gaara, it's okay. Really. I don't mind wearing the damn bracelet. It's kinda pretty anyway." She says.

The Daimyos watch this all with calculated looks. All of them were wearing the potential advantages and disadvantages of this unexpected match. None of them had any real idea what would be the best course of action.

"Well it seems that Mei's suggestion will have to do for now. Suki was pardoned for her crimes. We can hardly forbid her from pursuing whatever consensual romantic relationships she desires. While this one might not be the most prudent, it's perfectly legal. For now, she shall wear the bracelet. We will convene at a later time and decide what to do then." One of the Daimyos says.

Suki simply nods. She offers her hand to Gaara. The two of them teleport off in a swirl of sand and fire, leaving behind a very stunned group of ninjas and Daimyos.

"I think I'm going to be sick." Suki mutters once they were far enough away from the others.

"Yes, I feel the same way. I can't believe that they would give you a chakra bracelet like that. You aren't a criminal anymore and they should stop treating you as if you are one." Gaara states in irritation.

Suki manages to stagger a few feet away from her lovers before bending over and emptying the contents of what she had eaten that day. It was bad enough that she was getting sick. The last Uchiha certainly wasn't going to ruin what little was left of her dignity by vomiting on Gaara.

"Suki?!" He asks in concern and rushes over.

"It's fine. Probably just something that I ate." She murmurs.

"Be that as it may, I believe we should get you medical attention immediately. It isn't like you to get sick and especially not so suddenly. Come on. Let's go home." He says as they head back to the Sand Village.

They soon arrive back in the Sand Village. Gaara takes Suki to the hospital to get her looked at. The medic begins taking her vitals and doing the standard assessment.

"Well you don't have a fever and all your vitals are perfectly normal. I hate to get personal, but I have to ask as a medical professional. Everyone knows that the two of you are now together, have you been intimate without protection?" She inquires.

It would have been quite the amusing scene, if the medic wasn't partially terrified for her life. Two of the most fearsome ninjas on the planet suddenly looked rather bashful. Well that answered that question.

"Perhaps a pregnancy test would be a wise move?" She suggests.

"Yes, that would be a good idea. Thank you." Suki says, apparently she was the first of the lovers to get over her embarrassment enough to formulate a reply.

The medic nods and runs a blood test. She blinks when the result came in. Oh boy. She wasn't entirely certain if the ninja world was ready for this bombshell. Suki was no longer the last Uchiha.

"Con-gratulations. It seems that you are pregnant. My best guess is you are about two months along." She stammers.

Gaara blinks. Well they hadn't been using the Jutsu, so perhaps it was to be expected. If that estimate was accurate, that would mean that Suki had gotten pregnant the first time they had been intimate or not long after.

"I don't think Clan restoration is going to be an issue, if you are this fertile." Gaara muses.

"Gaara!" Suki says and lightly swats her lover.

"I am merely stating the obvious." He says as he tries to dodge the swat half-heartedly.

The red head was joking about her pregnancy. Suki took comfort in that fact. If he felt comfortable enough with the idea of her being pregnant to make jests about it, that meant the Gaara was comfortable with fatherhood in general.

"Yes, you should take these vitamins and we'll of course set up an appointment." Mikia states.

"Very well. Thank you, Mikia. I would appreciate it, if you kept this between us for now. Patient confidentiality is an important foundation of the medical field, so I'm told. We will just have to make another announcement relatively soon." The Kazekage decides.

Mikia was the medic who had just told them that Suki was pregnant. She was barely older than them. Gaara almost felt sorry for her. It had to be awkward to be the one to tell the Kazekage's lover was expecting their first child.

"Of course, Lord Kazekage. I would never reveal such personal information about a patient, without their consent." She assures him.

She had long brown hair that reached to her waist and forest green eyes. Mikia was wearing the traditional uniform of a Sand Medic. As far as Gaara could tell, those green eyes of hers were sincere when she promised to keep their "secret."

"Thank you. We appreciate it more than you will ever know." Suki says with a smile and she offers Gaara her hand.

"You're welcome, My Lady. Though I am just doing my job." The medic tells her.

Suki nods. Gaara takes her hand and the two head off to schedule their next appointment. After that, they quickly head to Suki's apartment. They needed some privacy to discuss things.

"Well I think it's safe to say that we have a lot to talk about." Gaara says once they were alone and Suki nods.

"Are you not happy about this? You were joking in the doctor's office." Suki asks anxiously.

"About the actual pregnancy itself? Suki, I never would have made love to you without protection, if I wasn't willing to be a father. It's more the reaction of the other ninja villages that concerns me. I'm very happy that we are going to have a family. We just have to find a way to make sure that others share our happiness." He says as he sits down on the couch and has the sand pull her into his arms.

Suki nods. She couldn't lie, it was a concern. But she was confident that their child would be safe. It had her, Gaara, and Naruto to protect it. She doubted anyone would ever be able to lay a finger on this kid.

"I'm going to wear the bracelet. That should reassure them. The fact that article about us is circulating makes it rather obvious that we are lovers. I'm certain that a certain degree, people are expecting this to happen eventually." She reasons and cuddles into his embrace.

"Yes, eventually. I don't think any of them were prepared for it to happen this soon. This is serious, Suki." He tells her and kisses her forehead.

"I know that it's serious. But I also know you. You won't let anything happen to us. Besides, it's a baby. I don't think anyone wants to get caught plotting against a couple expecting their first child. Can you imagine the devastation that would bring to a village's reputation?" The raven haired woman inquires.

Gaara pauses as he considers that. It was true, attacking a pregnant woman or a small child wouldn't do wonders for a village's prestige. That didn't mean they wouldn't do it though, if they thought the threat was great enough.

"I believe you of all people should know that we can not count on such assumptions." He says and caresses her cheek.

"Oh I know. I think that should keep most people from doing anything stupid. If it doesn't, well I'll just make sure that there is nothing left of them to burry. My first family was taken from me. I won't allow that to happen ever again." She vows.

The Kazekage kisses her. He knew that on some level, Suki was panicking. She was terrified of losing everything they had. He couldn't blame her.

"We'll find a way to make this work. Though I suppose I should inform Kankuro. Temari as well. They are going to be an aunt and an uncle. They have a right to know, don't you think?" He asks gently.

The eldest Uchiha snorts in amusement. Oh yes, she could just picture Kankuro's reaction to this news. He didn't even want Gaara to be with her. The young woman could only imagine how he would respond when he found out that she was carrying his bother's baby.

"I'm not sure how Temari will take this, but I doubt Kankuro is going to be happy. Are you sure that you are ready for that?" She asks gently.

"Considering you are already pregnant, I had better be. Don't worry. We'll find a way to make this work." Gaara promises her.

Meanwhile Naruto had arrived back in the Leaf. He heads to Sakura's immediately. She had wanted to know what was discussed at the meeting. Like any good friend, he was going to keep her in the loop.

"Yeah. So there wasn't really much point in denying it. Gaara and Suki are together. Gaara was pretty angry about everyone getting involved in their relationship. Suki is now wearing a bracelet that will keep her from attacking anyone if it isn't self-defense or on the Kazekage's orders. He REALLY didn't like that, but then they left. I think that things might be okay now." The blonde explains in a rush.

"I feel bad for them. Everything they do will be in the public eye. He's a Kage and her reputation will always make people suspicious of her." The pink haired woman admits.

"Yeah. I feel bad for them too. Then I remember that they found love. We should all be that lucky. Still I'm not really sure how this is going to go. I mean I trust that Suki will wear the bracelet, but she's a hot head and Gaara is very protective of her. Bad things might go down." The blonde continues.

Sakura couldn't disagree with that. The medic was also happy for Suki. God knows if anyone needed to find love, it was probably her. Maybe Gaara would be able to help her heal in ways that they simply hadn't been able to.

"So do you think they are really in love then?" She asks.

"I would say they have to be. If they aren't, it'd be pretty stupid for them to go through all this." Naruto says with a grin.

"That's good then. What's not so good is not knowing what is going to happen. Do Kankuro and Temari know?" His teammate inquires.

The blue eyed ninja blinks. That was a good question. He honestly didn't have any idea. They were Gaara's siblings, but the red head was a pretty private person. So it was hard to say.

"I don't know. If they didn't know before, they definitely are going to find out soon. I mean that newspaper made it obvious what was going on." The blonde answers honestly.

Sakura nods. Yes, the newspaper article had left very little to the imagination. She blushed just thinking about it. If nothing else, there was definitely a physical attraction there. A powerful one.

"Do you think it will last?" The pink haired woman dares herself to inquire.

"Judging by the way Gaara was acting, yeah. It's for real. I never thought I'd see the day when Suki fell in love, but I guess it happened." He says cheerfully.

Sakura giggles at that answer. She simply nods. Well they didn't have much of a choice now. They would just have to find a way to deal with it.

"I guess this explains why she wanted the transfer so badly. She wanted to be near him. I can't blame her. That is a long distance to travel back and forth." She muses.

Naruto nods in agreement. He wouldn't have been particularly thrilled to basically have to take a week to see his lover for one day. The transfer was just more practical.

"Hopefully, she ends up being happier there than she was in the Leaf." He says.

"What about you? Are you going to be okay with all this? You fought so hard and so long to bring her back." Sakura points out.

"I'll miss not seeing her every day. But if she's happier in the Sand, I'm not going to stand in her way. Maybe it's better for her in the long run." Naruto says with a shrug.

Sakura tilts her head in confusion. She wasn't entirely certain what Naruto meant by that. How was it better for Suki in the long run? She didn't get it.

"What do you mean?" The pink haired woman asks.

"As much as I hate to say this, it's the truth. So I'm not going to sugarcoat it. It'd be hard for her to ever really start over here. People's opinions about her are pretty well fixed. In the Sand, there is at least a chance that people might let her have a fresh start. She won't get that here." He says with a sigh.

Sakura shakes her head. She places her hand on her friend's shoulder. She knew Naruto. So the medic had a damn good idea what was going on in his mind at the moment and it wasn't pretty.

"You're right, but none of that is your fault. You can't blame yourself for people not wanting to give another person a second chance. You did everything you could do to help her. Besides, I'm sure she's grateful that you approved the transfer." Sakura says with a smile.

"Yeah. That's true. She did seem happy about that. I still wish there was more that I could have done, you know?" Naruto asks.

"I know. If you play your cards right and they have a boy, maybe she'll name him after you." The pink haired woman muses.

Naruto blinks. That thought had never occurred to him. That would be fucking awesome. He wondered if Gaara could talk her into doing that.

"That would be cool. I guess it's good to look on the bright side of things. I think we are going to need to do so, if we want to get through whatever the political fall out from this will be." Naruto states.

Sakura could only nod. The political repercussions of this relationship were bound to be enormous. One thing was for sure, she doubted very many people were going to stay neutral.


	12. Chapter 12

We're the Same

 **Author's Note:** Thanks for the reviews. For those interested, feel free to check out my other stories. Lots of plot bunnies are about to be unveiled. Anyway, I hope you all enjoy this chapter.

Chapter 12

A few days later, Suki couldn't help but think this was a little surreal. She was shopping for baby things with Temari. Somehow the feisty blonde had just assumed that if Gaara and Suki were going public, it was because she was pregnant.

In their defense, the couple hadn't known Suki was pregnant when they made their announcement. Suki knew that was a moot point though. Either way she was pregnant and she needed to do some shopping anyway. Besides, it would be good to bond with her child's aunt.

"I knew that something was going on." Temari muses as she shows Suki to where the strollers were.

"What do you mean?" The raven haired woman asks as she glances at the selection.

"Well in a twisted way, it was kinda obvious. Gaara was really focused on you during the Chunin Exams. I've never seen him fixate on someone like that before. I guess that was his version of teasing the girl he liked. Academy boys and young Genin do that a lot." The master tactician muses.

Suki tries not to laugh. She supposed that did make sense. Though Gaara's version of teasing the girl he liked was rather…extreme.

"You are saying that you knew he liked me because he wanted to kill me." Suki notes with a quiet laugh. (She tried not to laugh, but she was only human.)

"Yeah. I know. It sounds funny, but it's still true. How far along are you?" The Jonin inquires.

Suki couldn't argue with the accuracy of Temari's assessment. It still struck her as amusing. The raven haired woman idly wonders if maybe pregnancy hormones were causing it to be such an unexpectedly hilarious observation.

"About two months." She answers.

"Yeah. We should probably pick you up some maternity clothes too. Just to be on the safe side. Do you like any of these?" The blonde asks as she gestures towards the strollers.

The former S Class Criminal Ninja makes a face at the words _maternity clothes._ Of course, she knew that Temari was only being practical. Her stomach might still be flat now, but it wasn't going to stay that way for long. Still the two words already made her feel… _fat._

"They are all nice. Couldn't Gaara just make one out of his sand though?" She asks.

"Hmm. I guess he could. I'm not sure if that's safe though. The sand might get in the baby's mouth and it probably wouldn't be very comfortable." The other woman muses.

"Good point. I like the red one. It's got a nice cover over it. That'll be useful in the desert heat." Suki says after a moment and Temari nods.

"Yeah. It is nice. So how did you two, you know…?" The older ninja asks.

The formerly last Uchiha glances around the store. Baby shopping would be easier, if she knew the gender of their child. Hmm. There were a lot of cute baby things though. Maybe she could just buy some of everything. Sooner or later, they would probably have at least one son and one daughter, just out of the laws or probability.

She pauses when she hears Temari's question. Of course, Suki was Suki. Her time in the Sound had corrupted her and she misinterprets what Gaara's sister was asking.

"In his office and against the wall. He's very…attentive." Suki answers.

"What does his office have to do with anything? I was asking how you got together. Wait. Ohhh. Really?! You did it in his office?!" Temari asks and Suki covers the blonde's mouth.

Suki shakes her head disapprovingly at the other woman. Honestly, did she have to say that so LOUD?! Everyone was staring at them now.

"Yes, we did. Say that a little louder next time. I don't think the people in the Land of Iron heard you yet." The feisty Uchiha grumbles.

Temari mumbles an apology behind Suki's hand. The former Leaf Villager shakes her head and uncovers the wind user's mouth. Good. Maybe she would learn to be a little bit more discrete now.

"Sorry. It's just hard to picture him that way. I don't need the details of your sex life. I just meant how did you two realize that you had feelings for each other." She clarifies.

"Well it was the cat honestly. She tripped us. We just kinda landed on each other. Our lips touched and that was that really." The pregnant woman replies.

"The cat?" Temari asks skeptically and Suki nods in confirmation.

Temari giggles. It was hard to believe that Gaara had gotten a lover because of a clumsy cat. Then again, Nala was a sneaky little thing. The Sand Ninja didn't completely dismiss the possibility that the feline had done it on purpose.

"That's a story to tell the grandkids, I'm sure." She offers.

"Mmm it's a bit more romantic than grandpa tried to kill grandma. So naturally grandma was a masochist and fell in love with him a few years later. Yeah. I think we are going to go with the cat story, at least until they are a little older." Suki agrees.

Meanwhile Gaara was in his office, with Kankuro. He sighs. His brother was still adjusting to the news that he was about to be an uncle. The red head was trying to be patient though. It was a lot to take in.

"Were you trying to have this baby or did you just get caught up in the moment?" He asks.

"Both really. Suki made it clear that she wanted children. I thought about it and decided I was agreeable to the idea." The Kazekage answers.

Kankuro shakes his head. He knew that Gaara was a good person. He just wasn't sure that his baby brother was really ready for fatherhood. (Hell, Kankuro didn't think anyone ever really was, but especially not Gaara.)

"Don't you think that you two are rushing things, a bit? You just got together not that long ago. Wouldn't it have been wiser to wait until people were used to the idea of you two being together? This decision just doesn't effect you and her. It effects the Five Great Nations as a whole." The puppet master informs him.

Gaara's eyes narrow. He didn't particularly care for the implication. The implication was that he and Suki hadn't thought about this at all. That they were children who had gotten in over their heads.

"We've known each other since we were Genin. I don't think it's rushing it. Our relationship may be relatively new, but we are ninjas. For all we know, either of us could die tomorrow. Why wait? Besides, the other Kage and Daimyos are aware we are together and she's already pregnant. What ifs are pointless." He informs Kankuro.

Damn it. That was a good point. Kankuro wondered how the other Kages and Daimyos would react to this. It was one thing to accept Gaara and Suki were together. It was another for them to accept that there was a mini Uchiha on the way.

"Have you decided how you are going to tell them that Suki is pregnant?" Kankuro asks cautiously.

"I figured that once she starts showing, word will spread or we will notify them beforehand. Quite honestly, I refuse to have every aspect of my personal life put to a vote. Should I poll them when would be the best time for us to make love as well?!" Gaara hisses.

Kankuro groans. This was going south and very quickly. He supposed it was only natural. Gaara was protecting the mother of his child. Still he had to find a way to fix this.

"I'm sure that you will make an excellent father. I will help you in whatever way I can. I just wish that you two had looked before you leapt." His older brother says.

"Good. I am glad to hear that you will be supportive." Gaara replies firmly.

Kankuro knew that tone of voice. He had been very lucky not to be Sand Coffined. The Kazekage was clearly very protective of his unborn child and his lover. The puppet master mentally sighs and makes a note of this.

"How far along is she?" Kankuro dares himself to voice his curiosity.

"Around two months. It will be awhile before she begins to show yet. I just wanted to ensure that our loved ones knew first. Then I'll inform the other Kages and Daimyos." The red head assures him.

"Good. It will be a lot worse in the long run, if they think you were trying to keep this a secret." He reasons.

Gaara nods. He was aware of that. Of course he was going to tell them. The Kage just resented that he had to. This should be a private time of happiness for him and Suki. They should be celebrating, not worried about how the Daimyos and other Kages would react to their news.

"I'm aware of that. I love you, Kankuro. I truly do. You are a wonderful brother and I know that you only fuss over me because you care, but I'm not stupid. I understand the potential consequences of choosing her as my lover. I just view her as worth it. That was my decision and I'm not going to change my mind." Gaara states firmly.

Kankuro nods. Damn. His brother was actually in love. He was in love with a former S Class Criminal. A woman who could probably level a village, if she wanted to. God help them all.

A few hours later, Suki heads back to the Kazekage Mansion. Temari helped her carry in what seemed be a whole store worth of baby stuff. Maybe they had gotten a little carried away, she muses.

She shakes her head. Nevermind. It was better to have too much than too little. Besides, everything was just so cute. She couldn't help but go a little overboard.

"Suki, what happened to the floor of our home?" Gaara asks in shock when he walks out of his office.

"Oh Temari took me baby shopping. You said that it would be a good idea for us to get to know each other and pick up a few things. Remember?" His lover asks "innocently."

The Kazekage raises an eyebrow. Suki was a skilled actress, but she couldn't pull off innocent. She was anything, but. He loved her, but that was just a fact.

"Yes, I did say that. I believe I said a few things. I didn't expect you to buy enough child's clothing for an entire village." The red head muses.

"Well, I used my own money. We might have gone a little overboard, but I figured that it was better to be prepared." Suki replies sheepishly.

Gaara shakes his head. He has the sand pull his lover into his arms and kisses the top of her head. Somehow the fearsome ninja looked adorable when she was trying to look sheepish.

"It's not about the money. I have absolutely no qualms about buying you or our child whatever either of you desires. I'm just not sure where we are going to put all of this." He admits.

"We'll think of something. How did it go with Kankuro?" She asks with a smile.

"I think he's slowly coming around. He means well. I know he does. Though my patience was tried more than once. You should be resting. I may not know much about pregnancy, but I know it is important for pregnant women not to overexert themselves." He says.

Suki shakes her had in amusement. She rests her head on his shoulder. The oldest Uchiha was quite content to cuddle into him for the moment.

"Gaara, I'm not that far along. I'm perfectly capable of doing some shopping." She notes with a smile.

"Well you were gone for hours." He says as he scoops her up in his arms and carries her off Bridal Style.

"Who needs a horse, when I have you?" She asks as she snuggles into his arms as he carries her off.

Gaara kisses the top of her head. He quickly takes her to their room and sets his lover on the bed. He soon was laying by her side and wraps the blankets around them.

"You can ride me anytime you like." The red head says with a smirk.

"Mmm you are sending conflicting signals." She muses as she leans over and places a gentle kiss against his lips.

Gaara returns it happily. He wasn't really sure what she meant by conflicting signals. So he decided to ask.

"What do you mean?" The red head question his lover in a confused fashion.

"First, you tell me to rest. Then you tell me that I can ride you anytime I like. Sex is VERY enjoyable, but it's not exactly resting." She says with a smirk.

Oh right. She had a point there. Hmm. He needed to come up with a suitable reply for that one. Yeah. He was drawing a blank.

"Fair point. Well I suppose a few exceptions could be made to that request. It's just as important to make certain that you are relaxed. Stress is very bad for pregnant women, so I'm told anyway. You always seem much more relaxed after we are…together." The Kazekage reasons.

Suki's lips twitch upwards in amusement. It was cute. It was very cute when he thought he was being slick. Gaara just wasn't a very sneaky person by nature. (Well other than that one time he used a sand eye to steal some answers during the written portion of the Chunin exams.)

"Mmm it's hard not to be relaxed after that." She replies a she cuddles into him.

"Naruto would never believe me, if I told him how much you enjoy embracing." The Kazekage observes.

Suki blinks. He wouldn't dare, would he? God, she hoped he wasn't serious. The idiot would never let her live it down, if he knew that she was a cuddler.

"You wouldn't." She says in a horrified tone that makes Gaara laugh.

"You're right. I wouldn't do that to you. Though I imagine the result would prove most entertaining, if I did." He assures her and kisses his lover's forehead affectionately.

The eldest Uchiha visibly relaxes after that reassurance. Thank goodness. Her dignity lived to see another day.

"I love you, but you are evil sometimes." The former Leaf Villager declares.

"I love you too and that goes both ways." Gaara states with a smirk.

Suki shrugs. She couldn't really deny that one. It was certainly accurate. She had been a criminal for awhile.

"True enough." She says and yawns before snuggling into him more and closing her eyes.

A few minutes later, Gaara notes that her breathing had evened out. She had fallen asleep. He smiles. It was nice to know that she felt safe enough with him to fall asleep in his arms.

Idly, he realizes that was a silly observation to make. She felt safe enough with him to sleep with him in a far more carnal way. Of course Suki didn't think twice about falling asleep next to him.

"It's odd. I don't see anything. You are going to cause quite the stir and you're not even visible yet." He muses as he glances down at his lover's still very much flat stomach.

Gaara didn't know why he was talking Suki's stomach. He doubted very much that their child could hear him, much less understand him. Still he supposed it was the thought that counted. That was the last though to his mind before he fell asleep.

Back in the Leaf Village, the Council was not happy to say the least. In all honesty, they were in full panic mode. How could this have happened?!

"Suki Uchiha is now the Kazekage's consort." One of them says.

Another sighs as he pours them all a drink. None of them should be sober when dealing with such depressing news. Naruto simply had to be out of his mind. That was the only logical explanation.

"I can't believe he agreed to her transfer. I know that he considers her to be his friend, but that is just flirting with disaster. I have no idea how she seduced a fucking Kage though." Another states.

The third councilmember gives the second a dirty look. Really? He had to ask how she seduced a Kazekage? Gaara might be a Kage, but he was still a man. That answer was rather obvious.

"Alright. Alright. I can imagine how. I just can't believe that she did it. The Uchiha has never expressed a romantic interest in anyone before. It's very unlike her. Perhaps she did it for political power. At the very least, it got her out of the Leaf." He mutters.

"I knew it." A familiar voice calls out and immediately they all turn around.

"Naruto! What are you doing here?" The council members all cry out in terror.

Naruto growls. He had really hoped that he was wrong. Unfortunately, they had done exactly what he expected them to do. They were all trying to plot behind Gaara's and Suki's back.

"You know that's treasonous. You are plotting against an ally of our village. How dare you try to ruin Gaara's relationship?! He was crucial in our war victory! And this is how you repay him?!" The blue eyed ninja practically snarls at them.

The council members all gulp. Damn it. The blonde was angry. He was really, really angry. This wouldn't end well.

"I'm stripping you all of your status for now. I should exile you. For now, I won't. I don't want to banish four elderly people from the village. People will notice your absence. If you continue this behavior though, I will have a trial. For now, you are all retired. I'll replace you shortly." The Jinchuuriki warns them.

"You are most gen-erous and forgiving." One of them stammers.

Naruto bites back another snarl. He knew that he had to keep his cool. He had more important things to focus on, like warning his friends about the Council's efforts.

"Just get out of my sight." He says and they all rush off.

The blonde sighs and finds a scroll. He quickly pens a letter. The blonde then summons one of his toads to take it to the Sand Village.

"Make sure to get this to Suki and Gaara as soon as you can. It's super important." He says.

"You got it, boss!" The toad says and Naruto nods approvingly.

It was a shot letter and to the point. Naruto didn't think it was a good idea to be too detailed. If it was intercepted, that wouldn't look good.

He had faith that Gaara and Suki would be able to read between the lines though. They were both smart. Besides, Gaara was Kazekage. He was used to decoding things.

 _ **Dear Gaara and Suki,**_

 _ **Things are heating up in the Leaf. The summer heat is horrible. I thought I should give you a heads up. It looks like things are cooling down now, but you never know.**_

 _ **Hope that things are going okay, in the Sand. I can't wait to hear from you. I'm really happy for the two of you.**_

 _ **Love, Naruto.**_

"That should do it." He muses.

Heating up was code for trouble. Cooling down was obvious. It meant that he had probably addressed the danger, but they should be careful.

"It'll take a few days to get to them. That's okay though. I doubt the Council, could do anything faster than that." He mutters and watches his Summon hops off.

Naruto sighs and darts off to find Sakura. It was probably a good idea to let her know what was going on. She'd know what to do.

"Naruto, what's wrong? You look worried." The pink haired woman says a few minutes later, after the blonde had found her.

"It's a long story. Do you have a few minutes to talk?" He asks.

The medic blinks at his anxious tone and nods. She gestures for her friend to follow her into one of the empty hospital rooms. Naruto does so without any hesitation.

"So what's going on?" Sakura demands.

"It was the Council. I caught them talking about Suki and Gaara. I think they were probably planning something." He mutters.

Sakura blinks. It was worse than she thought. She didn't know why she was surprised. They did love to meddle where Suki was concerned, but still this was a bridge too far.

"What are you going to do?" She inquires.

"I fired them. I was tempted to exile them, but I didn't want to have to explain where they went. They are too high profile. People would notice if they were gone. I told them, that if they didn't stop it, I would hold a trial and they would be exiled." Nauto tells her.

The pink haired woman sighs. She understood Naruto's response. She really did. Sadly, in the long run, it would probably cause more trouble for the new couple than anything.

"What makes you think that they won't tell the other villagers?" His friend demands.

"Well if they do, then I'll start the trial. That and I'm the war hero. They aren't. People are going to take my word more seriously than theirs." He says proudly.

Sakura pauses and considers this. That was a good point. Still she wasn't sure that was enough to count on.

"We have to tell Suki and Gaara about this. It's important to be subtle though. If someone intercepts the letter, that won't end well." The young woman observes.

"I already sent a letter. I made it really subtle. I don't think anyone else would be able to decode it. But their both really smart. I think they can figure out what I was trying to say. If nothing else, the fact that I sent a letter about the weather should let them know that something is up." He reasons.

Sakura nods approvingly at that strategy. Well that was something at least. The medic takes a deep breath and tries to think of what else they could do.

"We are going to need to watch them closely. Let's talk to Shino. His bugs are great for gathering intelligence in situations like this." The pink haired woman suggests.

"That's a great idea. Yeah! Lets go find Shino." He agrees and the two friends take off to find the bug master.


	13. Chapter 13

We're the Same

 **Author's Note:** Thanks for the reviews. Sorry, that this one is late. I got caught up on some of my other stories. Anyway, I hope you guys enjoy this chapter.

 **Chapter Notation:** I believe that different ninja villages would likely have different cultures. I do think that the environment would play a role in shaping that culture. Hence when it comes to certain festivities, the Sand has its own unique way of doing things in this story ;) This chapter takes place one month after the last one.

Chapter 13

When the day of her wedding finally dawned, Suki couldn't help but feel like the entire experience was more than a little surreal. Was this all really happening? Was she actually getting married to Gaara?

She quickly gets up and strides over to the mirror in her bathroom. Every day she checked and every day it was the same. So far her stomach still remained stubbornly flat. Though she knew it was still early. She was only three months along. Still Suki was confident that she would start showing soon.

"Well I guess that it's time to make sure that I look pretty for your father." She muses as she lightly pats her stomach and quickly gets in the show.

Suki hums as she proceeds to wash her hair and glances down at her hand. The ring was still there. She had used a minor jutsu to make sure that it wouldn't slip off. Apparently female ninjas had come up with that trick a century or two back and it was still highly effective.

"The past, present, and future." She murmurs to herself with a smile as she looks down at her ring and remembers Gaara's proposal.

 _"Gaara, would you mind tell me why you dragged us all the way out to the Leaf Village for seemingly no reason, now?" Suki asked in amusement._

 _It was midnight. Thank goodness it was summer and thus warm enough that neither of them was likely to catch a chill. The moonlight illuminated everything around them and the stars were bright, so it was truly a beautiful night. She smiles as she hears some crickets chirruping in the distance, allowing herself to be momentarily distracted by the beauty of nature._

 _"I thought it was appropriate. This is the spot where we met after all." The red head said as he dropped to knee._

 _"Appropriate for what?" The Uchiha woman inquired in confusion as she saw her lover sit on bended knee._

 _Gaara smiled and pulled out a small box. He opened it and remove something small and shiny from inside. The red head then promptly slid it on her finger._

 _"An appropriate place to propose. That ring has three diamonds. The one on the left symbolizes our past. The middle diamond represents our present. And the last gem symbolizes our future. I think that I always loved you, even back then. I just didn't realize that is what I felt for you. We are going to have a child together. That's our future. So in the present, I am asking you to marry me." He said._

 _Suki gasped. Whatever she had been expecting, that hadn't been it. Gaara was proposing to her?!_

 _"Gaara, that was beautiful." She said as she looked down at the young Kage in shock._

 _"I'm glad that you think so. I worked rather hard on it. Is that a yes, then?" He asked._

 _Suki smiled and pounced. As she did so, she marveled at the fact that she was capable of being this happy. That realization stunned her the core as she embraced the father of her child tightly._

 _"It's a yes." She told him as she captured his lips with her own in a heated kiss._

 _Gaara didn't waste any time in returning her kiss. Suki found herself smiling as he did so. If nothing else, red heads certainly lived up to their reputation as being passionate. (Well at least Gaara did.)_

"It really is a beautiful ring." She muses to herself as she finishes washing her hair.

It had three white diamonds on it. As Gaara said, they represented the past, present, and future. The diamonds adorned a golden band. It was very elegant in her mind.

Really, it could also potentially blind any attacker dumb enough to mess with her, she notes with more than a little glee. When the sunlight struck the diamonds just right, they would shine so brightly that even Lee and Guy's smiles were dull in comparison. Thus it could also be used as a weapon.

"I wonder if he did that on purpose?" The young woman asks herself as she gets out of the shower, dries off, dresses, and departs to meet up with her bridal party.

Meanwhile Gaara was in the middle of a debate with Kankuro. He seemed to think that the red head should wear a wedding kimono. The red head didn't agree. He was very insistent on wearing his Kazekage robes.

"Eh. If he wants to wear his robes, let him." Naruto says as he glances out the window and blinks at the massive crowd of people outside.

Gaara smirks triumphantly at that and the puppet master just shakes his head. He couldn't believe that his brother was arguing with him about this. He couldn't wear white on his wedding day! Only the bride was supposed to wear white!

"See? It's perfectly acceptable." Gaara insists.

"You know that only the bride is supposed to wear white, right? It's tradition." Kankuro insists.

The red head just shakes his head. No, he wasn't going to change his mind about this. His Kazekage robes were very important symbolically and besides, he hated wearing male dress kimonos!

"The power of youth is strong today!" Lee exclaims brightly.

Everyone but Lee and Guy just shake their heads. All of them were used to the antics of the spandex lovers by now. Really, they would have been concerned if the two of them weren't being weird.

"There sure are a lot of people out there." Naruto muses.

"Of course there are a lot of people. It's a Kage's wedding." Shikamaru says with a yawn.

Shino raises an eyebrow. He really wondered why the lazy genius was always so tired lately. It didn't make any sense. He hadn't had any strenuous missions lately.

"Why are you so tired? It's only eight in the evening. It's not that late." The insect lover asks.

Shikamaru actually blushes. He looks at Gaara a bit skittishly. This causes the red head to raise his eyebrow.

"It seems that the Sand or Leaf should expect another wedding in the near future. If you hurt my sister, I will break every bone in your body. Ask Lee what happens to those that fight me." The Kazekage warns him and Shikamaru gulps.

"Whoa. Take it easy there. I mean yeah, he's dating your sister. But Shikamaru is a good guy. He's not going to purposely screw things up with her." Kiba says.

Gaara shakes his head. No, he wasn't going to take it easy. Temari was his sister. Shikamaru may be a good guy, but that didn't mean that he wasn't going to fulfill his sacred obligations of brotherhood. He had to scare the Hell out of him. It was a matter of honor really.

"I second what Gaara says. My puppets will tear you apart, if you hurt our sister." Kankuro agrees and Shikamaru looks more than a little green around the gills at that announcement.

"Shouldn't we be getting you to the alter?" Choji asks as he bites into some chips.

"Good point. We should be going." Gaara arrives as he and his groomsmen walk outside, much to the delight of the crowd.

Gaara was Kazekage. So he was used to dealing with large crowds by now, but he hadn't seen one this excited since the end of the war. While public opinion may have been split about his wife, it was clear that the Sand Villagers were excited about the idea of Gaara getting married in general.

Really, the red head was almost certain that some of the Sand Villagers were secret romantics. To them, the idea that love could "reform" someone was rather appealing. So at least some of his villagers, were being surprisingly supportive about his relationship with the last Uchiha.

"Congratulations, Lord Kazekage!" He hears someone shout from the crowd as he makes his way to the beautiful silver alter in the center of the village square.

It had wild desert flowers weaved throughout it. There was a fountain in the center of the village that was rather symbolic. Most of the time, there wasn't water in it. Today, there was. For grand weddings and occasions like this, there always was.

He notes that it was a beautiful night. The Moon was just as full as the day it was when he proposed to her and the stars were bright. There were fires lit all over the place for warmth and light. (It could be surprisingly cold in the desert at night, after all.) Despite the fact that the Moon and stars were luminous, no one wanted to take any chances.

"Thank you." Gaara calls out to the well wishers and waves to them.

He could see that there were elegant tables scattered here and there. Mountains of food had been placed on them. Cuisine from all Five Great Nations had been mounted on them and there were dozens of wedding cakes as well.

There simply were too many people attending the wedding for them to have a single cake. So they had lots of them. Gaara thought this was practical. After all, not everyone had the same taste in cake anyway. Surely, everyone would find something they would like when such a wide selection had been laid out.

"Wow, you guys really went all out." Naruto observes in awe.

"Yes, it's not every day a Kage gets married." Gaara informs his best man and watches for Suki.

Soon enough a flower girl came out. One of the local Sand Villagers. She seemed to rather enjoy tossing the desert blooms everywhere.

That was normal. What wasn't normal was a toad hopping down the aisle, carrying the rings. This causes the Kazekage to look at his friend with a raised eyebrow.

"Oh come on. It's funny. You only get married once. You might as well make sure it's memorable." The blonde reasons and Gaara just shakes his head in amusement.

It didn't take long for loud gasps to be heard. The red head knew what that meant. Suki had just come out and she was being escorted by Temari. Suki's family was dead and Naruto was his best man, so they had to improvise with who was going to walk her down the aisle.

Surprisingly, Temari appeared to have a cordial relationship with the Uchiha woman. So it was decided that the feisty blonde would escort Suki. That decision made for quite the dramatic effect.

Suki and Temari truly looked like night and day, walking alongside each other. It was poetic in an odd way. The pair of them were certainly crowd pleasers at the very least, if the chorus of cheers that were ringing out were anything to go by.

"My little Genin are all grown up." Kakashi sniffles.

"Kakashi, are you crying?" Guy asks in shock when he realizes that the legendary CopyCat Ninja might be tearing up.

"No. No. I just got something in my eye. That's all." The silver haired man quickly denies the crying accusation as Suki makes her way down the aisle.

Suki's raven black hair contrasted beautifully with her white silk wedding kimono and she had left it down. So the feral dark tresses were on full display and made her ivory cream colored skin look even more exotic than usual. He noted with some amusement that her Sharingan was activated and the color matched her sash.

The kimono came to her ankles and swished behind her. It flattered her curvaceous figure well without crossing the line into scandalous territory. Much to Gaara's delight she had a sweetheart neckline. So just a hint of cleavage was visible. (He loved all of her, but he really was a breast ninja and Suki clearly had no issue with exploiting that fact.)

"You look beautiful. You always do, but especially today." Gaara says with a smile once she reaches him.

"That was a very nice save." Suki replies with a small smile of her own.

"Yes, I thought so as well." The red head agrees with his bride.

The priest pauses. The enormity of the occasion had just fully struck him. He was officiating the wedding of a Kage and the last member of the Uchiha Clan. If this didn't go perfectly, he was a dead man walking.

"Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today to celebrate the union of Lord Gaara Sabaku and Suki Uchiha. If there is anyone who objects to this match, please speak now or forever hold your peace." He states simply.

On the inside, he was panicking though. God help them all, if someone was actually suicidal enough to object. It could easily become a bloodbath. Everyone's only hope of survival rested on whether or not someone would raise objections.

"Ah wonderful. So there are no objections. Do you Lord Gaara take Suki Uchiha to be your lawfully wedded wife? To have and to hold? To love, honor, and cherish. Do you pledge to stand by her side in good times and in bad and to forsake all others until death do you part?" The middle aged priest inquires.

"I do." Gaara says without any hesitation as he stares into his wife's ruby red eyes.

The priest mentally breathes a sigh of relief. Alright. So far, so good. He could get through this.

That's when he made the mistake of looking closely at the happy couple. Sharingan was terrifying up close and Gaara was wearing his gourd. This might not end well for him.

Do you Suki Uchiha take Lord Gaara to be your lawfully wedded husband? To have and to hold? To love, honor, and cherish. Do you pledge to stand by her side in good times and in bad and to forsake all others until death do you part?" He asks.

"I do." Suki says, completely oblivious to the fact that the priest was about two seconds away from having a heart attack.

"Then by the power vested in me by the Sand Village and the Wind Nation, I pronounce thee man and wife. You may kiss the bride." He says.

Gaara didn't waste any time. He immediately captures Suki's lips in a heated kiss. There were some very loud gasps from the crowd. The Kazekage was apparently not shy. Then again, it didn't look like Suki was either.

"Well it looks like Suki isn't going to have any problems restoring her Clan." Sakura whispers to Temari.

Temari nods in agreement. If nothing else, it was rather obvious that the newlyweds were going to have a very enthusiastic Honeymoon. She pitied anyone that tried to come between them at this point.

"Gaara, this wedding is supposed to be appropriate for children to watch." Kankuro warns him.

"Oh right. Right. I may have gotten a little carried away there." Gaara apologizes.

"Trust me there is NOTHING little about him." Suki assures the crowd and leads her now blushing husband to the dance floor.

He couldn't believe she had actually said that in front of everyone. Gaara had known that his wife was not a shy woman of course. He just didn't expect her to reference the size of his "gourd" so publicly.

"Did you have to reveal such a personal detail to them?" Gaara asks as he wraps his arms around her waist.

"No, but it was funny. Besides, it helps to ensure them that we have a loving marriage. That and you really shouldn't complain. It was a compliment." Suki says with smirk.

The Kazekage shakes his head. He had no idea what he was going to do with his beautiful, but very wicked wife. Well he had a few ideas actually. Most of them couldn't be done in public.

"You are quite a skill dancer." He observes.

"Thank you. All Uchiha children are taught how to dance from an early age. It's good for flexibility training and we used to have public functions that we attended. We might have been isolated from most of the village, but they did like to trot us out for important occasions." The raven haired woman says.

Gaara was almost positive that he detected a trace of bitterness in her voice when talking about her former home. It didn't matter, he decided. Things would be very different for their family in the Sand Village than they had been for her Clan in the Leaf. He would make sure of it.

"That isn't going to happen here. You won't be isolated. That much I can promise you." He assures her and places a kiss to her forehead.

"I know. I believe you and I love you." Suki tells him as they continue dancing.

Gaara smiles. He believed that she meant that. Suki wasn't the type to lie. He mentally reminds himself to do something special for Nala. If it wasn't for that cat, they might never have gotten together.

"I must say that our child is very well behaved. It's remarkable really." The Kazekage muses as he spins her around.

"Mmm what do you mean?" Suki replies in confusion.

"Well you haven't had any Morning Sickness for our entire wedding." Gaara whispers lowly enough so that only the two of them could hear.

Suki ohhhs. That was a good point. Yes, they had a very well behaved child. Suki did appreciate the fact that she hadn't gotten sick in this beautiful gown.

"That's true. Though I am having cravings. We should probably cut one of those cakes." She informs him.

"That's an excellent idea. Then we can throw the bouquet and garter belt." He suggests.

Suki nods in agreement. The two of them make a grand show of cutting the cake, much to the crowd's delight. Suki hands Gaara a kunai and she hurls a few dozen to slice up as many cakes as possible, while her husband cut the largest.

"ALRIGHT EVERYONE! STAND BACK! Their going to throw the bouquet and garter belt." Naruto announces.

"Naruto, your lung capacity continues to astound me." Gaara observes and Naruto chuckles.

Suki just shakes her head. She quickly tosses her bouquet of white and red roses into the crowd. Immediately, all the woman begin to fight for the right to catch the flowers.

"I'm really glad that I'm not a single woman at a wedding. That looks like such a drag." Shikamaru muses.

"No kidding." Gaara agrees and blinks as he watches the utter brutality.

"Alright ladies, there is no need to kill each other over flowers. Hey! Hey! That is a technical foul. No using kunais to catch the bouquet." Kakashi calls out.

It was useful though. All the women were still fighting. Eventually, the smoke clears and Temari emerges victorious with a grin.

Gaara shakes his head. That was disturbing. He didn't even want to know what his sister had done to catch those damn flowers. Still he knew that it was his turn. So he gestures for his wife to sit down and slowly slides off her garter belt.

This was much to the delight of the crowd. The Kazekage understood that putting on a performance for his people was essential. He wanted them to know that he and Suki were really in love. That meant indulging in some traditions and removing that garter belt from her lovely leg, very slowly.

"Make it a good throw. Give them a show." Suki says slyly.

"Oh I was planning on it." The red head replies as he hurls the garter belt straight at Shikamaru.

The poor guy had no idea it was coming. He couldn't duck or anything. Sure enough, the laziest ninja caught the garter belt.

"What a drag. Now I'm going to have to buy a ring." He mutters.

Suki laughs and walks over to the fountain with Gaara. They each take a small old fashioned gourd and held it up to each other's lips. Water was life in the desert. Sharing it with someone was considered highly symbolic in the Sand Village.

Both of them drank from the gourds as cheers rang up. Perhaps not surprisingly, someone had smuggled in fireworks and there were now several bonfires going. Suki blinks as some Sand Villagers start dancing dangerously close to the flames in a way that seemed positively primal.

"Is that safe?" She asks Gaara warily.

"It is. That dance has been passed down for centuries. Perhaps even thousands of years. It's considered good luck and is supposed to summon rain." He muses.

Suki raises an eyebrow. She could see people believing that hundreds of years ago, but that was just silly. It wasn't going to rain in a desert just because some people were dancing.

"They don't actually believe that dancing is going to make it rain, do they?" She asks.

"Some of them do. Besides, it's a harmless tradition." Gaara reasons and Suki nods.

"Well I suppose that I still have a lot to learn about being a Sand Village. Are there any more of these traditions that I should know about?" The raven haired woman asks.

"Well considered rather traditional that the bride and groom not leave their Honeymoon Suite very much." Gaara says with a smirk.

The young bride laughs at that and kisses Gaara's cheek. She never thought that she'd actually have this. That she'd have a family and find happiness again, but she had.

"Gaara, are you crying?" She asks in confusion when she felt something wet on her cheek.

"No, I'm not crying. Why do you ask? I have no reason to cry. Today, is a very happy day." The Kazekage replies in an equally baffled tone.

"I felt something wet on my cheek. I thought that it was your tears." Suki says and then she looks up.

Storm clouds. It was about to pour. What the Hell? Suddenly shouts from the crowd rang up. Some rather joyous ones actually. The Sand Villagers were certainly loving this.

"I can't believe that the dancing actually worked, but it looks like it did." Suki muse.

"Well there is something to be said for tradition. Come on. Let's head off before we get caught in the downpour." Gaara says as he wraps his arms around his wife tightly and forms a protective ball of sand around them.

"Oh well that's convenient. Are you sure that it's waterproof though?" Suki inquires as they begin ascending into the sky.

Gaara nods. He knew it was waterproof. Well to a certain extent. The outside sand might turn into a mud-like, but he could just keep replacing it. It would keep them dry.

"I'm sure. I booked us a room in the Land of Tea." Gaara informs her and Suki smiles.

"I don't think that it really matters where we go. We won't be leaving the Honeymoon Suite much. After all, there is something to be said for tradition." Suki states with a smirk.


	14. Chapter 14

We're the Same

 **Author's Note:** Thanks for the reviews. I hope you all enjoy the Honeymoon chapter.

Chapter 14

Suki smiles when they arrive in the Land of Tea. She had never been this happy before. She was in love, married, and they were going to have a family together. If it wasn't for the Morning Sickness that was threatening to overwhelm her again, everything would have been absolutely perfect.

"Suki, what are you doing?" Gaara asks with a raised eyebrow as she begins walking towards their Honeymoon Suite.

"Going to our room. Why? Is something wrong?" She asks in confusion.

Gaara shakes his head in amusement and scoops her up in his arms. The red head then proceeds to carry her Bridal Style into their room. It was tradition, after all.

"I'm supposed to carry you over the threshold." He reminds her.

"Mmm that's true. How could I have forgotten that?" The sultry ninja inquires playfully as she leans up slightly in his arms to kiss him.

The Kazekage smiles and returns her kiss. After doing so, he carries his lover to the bed and gently lays her down on it. That was when he decided to join her.

"That's right. It's very important to do things the proper way." He says with mock seriousness.

"Mmm that's true. I guess that we should properly consummate our marriage." Suki says with a smirk as she playfully pins him to the bed.

Gaara smiles up at his wife. God, he loved this woman. He especially liked the way she thought and how she looked on top of him. He didn't mind her being on top. Who was going to argue with that view?

"My sentiments exactly." He tells her as he reaches for the sash of her wedding kimono.

"Mmm that's not good. You are still using words with more than two syllables. You shouldn't be able to do that on our Honeymoon. Clearly, I have my work cut out for me, if I'm going to fuck your brains out." She tells him as she reaches for the waistband of his pants and slowly starts sliding it off.

 **Warning Honeymoon Lemon**

The red head gulps a bit. There was something incredibly erotic and yet mildly terrifying when she spoke like THAT. Apparently, his lioness was in pounce mode.

"Well I suppose I don't mind being as articulate as a caveman for a couple weeks, but eventually I really will need my brains back." He informs her as he admires the sight of her open wedding kimono.

She was wearing a dark purple satin bra underneath the kimono that flattered her creamy breasts perfectly. Idly, he wondered how they made bras that could defy gravity like that. The laws of physics seemed to dictate that the fragile sensual fabric should not be able to hold her ample breasts up. Somehow though, the rebellious lingerie managed to complete its mandated task.

"Mmm don't worry. I'll take good care of your brains and **everything** else." She purrs seductively into his ear.

"That sounds good to me." Gaara says as he shivers at the erotic lilt in her purr and slowly slides her kimono past her shoulders.

The fabric pools around her waist. He smiles and glides his hands over her back in a sensual massage. She was glorious. All lean muscle and seductive curves. There wasn't a part of his body that didn't fascinate him to some degree or another. Though he had to admit that her eyes, breasts, and backside were certainly some of his favorite places to admire.

"I thought you might like that." She says as she takes out a kunai and proceeds to slice off his clothes.

If anyone else held a kunai to him, his sand would have reacted. Apparently, even his subconscious trusted her. He could feel the coolness of the blade lightly brush against his skin, but never cutting him. Suki was skilled with all manner of blades.

"You know that is rather hypocritical of you. If I were to slice your kimono off, you would become rather cross with me." He states and yanks off her bra, freeing her breasts from the beautiful prison that they had been entrapped in.

"Mmm I wouldn't have minded that much really. Your touch means more to me than a kimono, no matter how beautiful it might be." She informs him as she sits up tall and slowly slides her kimono the rest of the way off, revealing a matching thong.

"Good to know. You're a little sadistic, you know that? Employing a kunai in the bedroom?" He asks as he flips them until he was on top.

Suki smirks. She knew that would work. If you used a weapon, that was going to make any ninja respond. It always worked like a charm.

With that thought in mind, she slips out of her remaining lingerie and wraps her legs around his waist. They both groaned in pleasure at the contact she felt herself instinctively arch against him. The young bride still wasn't sure what it was about Gaara that made her act this way. She had never been one to seek out intimacy before.

"Mmm maybe a little, but you're a little masochistic. So it works out rather well. Don't you think?" She breathes hotly into his ear before licking it and her hand slides over his muscular chest teasingly.

She always delighted in running her hands over him. The Uchiha constantly took great enjoyment out of feeling every muscle coil underneath her fingertips at her tough. He might be a stationary fighter, but carrying that heavy gourd on his back had ensured the everything was well sculpted. He was toned, but not bulky. Lithe muscle.

"I suppose when you put it that way, it makes perfect sense. Though I thought that it was more a matter of animal attraction. It's instinctual." He muses as he captures her lips in a heated kiss.

Suki smiles into the kiss and wraps one arm around his neck and glides the other further south. The Uchiha woman was glad that his kisses swallowed up her moans, because she knew that she was moaning into the kiss. Animal attraction. Maybe that was more accurate.

Whatever one wanted to call it, she constantly reveled in it. So did Gaara. She knew this because she could feel that he was already fully aroused by the time her hands found another, far more interesting kunai than the one she had used to remove his clothes.

"Mmm that's one way to put it." She says after breaking the kiss and she begins stroking him.

Gaara instinctively bucks into her hand. It was amazing. That hand was the same one that could hold lightning and yet she could be surprisingly gentle, when she wanted to. Maybe that was part of the attraction.

The knowledge that at any moment, either of them was fully capable of killing the other. But they wouldn't. There was an element of combat that lingered beneath the surface. That got his blood pumping as much as her seductive touches and the stunning visual that she presented underneath him.

"Beautiful." He growls lustfully as he leaves a trail of possessive kisses and love bites along her throat, occasionally sucking just long enough to leave a mark.

"Yes, you are." Suki agrees as she continues teasing his cock with her hand and she nibbles on his ear playfully.

She didn't know why her neck was so damn sensitive. She just knew that as soon as he started lavishing it with his attention, she felt her lower half begin to hum with desire. So she brushes their cores together teasingly.

"You're an evil tease. Kankuro was right to warn me about you." He groans as he arches into his wife's wicked touches.

"You're right. That was mean of me. I should make it up to you." She says with a sly smile as she wiggles out from underneath him and pins him to the bed.

Gaara raises an eyebrow. This was Suki. Making it up to you could be almost anything. He blinks when he saw her lean over the edge of the bed to pull something out from underneath it.

Well the red head was only human. Who could possibly resist that tantalizing view. He gives her gorgeous backside a quick smack, causing her to yip more from shock than anything else.

"Gaara! Oh that's it! Definitely brining out the cuffs now." She informs him as she pulls them out and slaps the chakra cuffs on her husband.

The Kazekage blinks. He wasn't sure what he was expecting, but that certainly wasn't it. He didn't mind though. The young ninja knew that sooner or later, she would give them both what they wanted. The nice thing about being lovers was that he knew her as well as she knew him. Neither of them could resist each other for too long.

"And now that you have me cuffed, what are you going to do?" Gaara asks with a raised eyebrow.

"Make you beg and make it up to you." She says with a smirk as she moves further down and takes the tip of his arousal into her mouth.

Gaara groans and bucks against her lightly. Now he understood the cuffs. He wouldn't have been able to stay still otherwise. Not when he wonderfully hot mouth was wrapped around his cock and subjecting him to such sweet torture.

Suki smirks at the reaction and sucks on him lightly. She made sure to brush her lips against the sensitive flesh in a gentle kissing motion before lavishing it with her tongue and grazing her teeth against him lightly. Never enough to hurt, but she could tell that he liked the added element of danger because he bucked against her faster whenever she did that.

"Suki! Th-at isn't fair and you know it! Fuck! Come on, take the cuffs off of me." He pants out.

Suki smirks. It was nice to know that at the end of the day, the Kazekage was still a man. Really, it was rather thrilling to know she had this much power over one of the most influential ninjas in the modern world. That was more than enough for her to get over her slight embarrassment of performing such a "submissive" act.

She decides to see just how far she could push him. So Suki sucks him harder and faster. Taking most of him into her mouth and just before she thought he was going to cum, she releases him and undoes the cuffs.

"That was particularly sadistic of you to stop right now! I was so close." He growls lustfully as he gets up and quickly scoops up Suki in his arms, carrying her towards a large mirror in their room.

He smiles and sets her down so she was standing only a few feet away from the mirror, with him behind her. Suki glances back at him confused. She really didn't get it.

"Gaara?" She asks in confusion.

"I want you to be able to see how good we look together." He tells her simply and Suki felt herself shiver in anticipation.

His words were simple, but his tone was anything but. There was something primal about it and very sexy. She nods her head in consent.

"Mmm I think that's a good idea." She says and Gaara smirks.

It was a predatory smirk. The eldest Uchiha suddenly licks her lips both in anticipation and in nervousness. She might have just bitten off more than she could chew.

"Good. Now you get to see just what I see." Gaara says approvingly as he kisses her neck and wraps one arm around her waist possessively, while the other caresses her breasts.

Suki sighs in contentment and tilts her neck to the other side to grant him better access. That felt good. Really good.

"Mmm and what do you see?" She asks curiously as she reaches her hand down to stroke her already fully aroused husband.

"The most beautiful woman in the world. You've always captivated me though. I just didn't realize in what way at first." He says as he moves away from her hand and then brushes his erection lightly against her womanhood, causing them both to moan.

"You are a sweet talker when you want to be. For the record, I see a very hot red head." She says with a smile.

She tilts her head back just enough to kiss him. The former Leaf Villager moans when he teases her breasts and his other hand finds her clit. Gaara wasted no time in rubbing it with his thumb.

Suki felt her thighs quiver in anticipation and blushed when she realized how wet she already was. It was the strange sensation. She could see how he was touching her and feel it at the same time. Somehow that only made her feel even more sensitive.

"Good. I'm glad. I like it when you moan for me." He informs her and as if to illustrate his point, he rubs her clit more and slides finger inside her.

"Fuck! I l-ike it when you give me a reason to moan." She pants out wantonly.

They really did look good together. The ivory cream of her skin against his slightly bronzer skin. Gaara's blood red hair against her raven hair. He was also bigger than her. So much so that she looked rather petite in comparison. Somehow that just meant that they fit together better.

Gaara smirks. He loved it when she moaned. He hadn't been lying about that. He still couldn't believe that the gorgeous seductress in his arms, was really his or that she wanted him as much as he wanted her. Though there was physical evidence of that fact.

"You're already so wet. Do you want me to take you?" He asks.

"Yes." She says simply and other than their wedding vows, she had never been more sincere in her entire life.

That was all that Gaara needed. He wraps his arms around her waist firmly to hold her in place as he buries himself inside her with one swift thrust.

They had already made love countless times before this point. Both moaned at the familiar, though euphoric sensation of being joined together again. Suki would never get tired of this. The way that he completely consumed her. All other thoughts would leave her mind whenever they were together in this way.

"Perfect." He murmurs reverently as he kisses her neck and begins to claim her hard and faster.

All pretense of foreplay was gone. Once they were connected like this, there was no more holding back. Animal instinct took over and Suki didn't mind this at all. She quite preferred it. Their passion for each other was real and raw. Neither could ever fully control themselves.

"Nhh! Gaara!" She moans as she arches back against him and rolls her hips encouragingly as she tries to guide him deeper inside her.

Gaara didn't need the guidance though. He slams into that spot inside her that made her see stars again and again. The two lovers moved as one. They knew each other completely.

"Do that again." He growls as he bites down lightly on her neck and moves inside her faster and faster, sending both of them closer to the edge.

"Gaara!" She screams in pleasure, knowing instinctively what he wanted.

Gaara smirks and tilts her head back just enough for a heated kiss. He plunders her mouth completely with his tongue, reveling in the fact that she let him do so. Suki was naturally competitive, so for her to "surrender" in this fashion was both heartwarming and extremely erotic. He felt his arousal grow even harder at that thought as he moved inside his wife.

His wife. She was his. No one else would ever get to see her this way or touch her this way. Her moans were reserved for him. The beautiful insanity that was being inside her was a privilege no one else was going to have.

"Beautiful." He whispers again as he thrusts inside her hot, tight womanhood again and again.

Her breasts were actually jiggling from the force of their coupling, but neither cared. Both of them preferred a more wild manner of lovemaking than most people did. This wasn't about gentle declarations about love. This was about possession.

Gaara glances at the mirror and admires the glorious sight of his wife's raven black hair spilling around her face everywhere every time he drove inside her. Her ivory cream skin was flushed a light shade of pink with arousal. Her body moved with him in perfect time and her moans were driving him to sheer madness. But it was a wonderful madness. Who needed sanity, when you had this?

"Feels so good!" She moans and cries out his name again when with one final thrust, he sent them both over the edge together.

The two cling to each other for a few moments, trying to catch their breath. Gaara was the first to recover. He slides out of Suki and scoops her up into his arms, before carrying her back to their bed.

 **End of Honeymoon Lemon**

"Mmm you're amazing. If I had know that would be what'd I get for being a good girl and coming back, I would have done it a long time ago." Suki whispers as she allows herself to be laid back on the bed by her husband.

"If I had known that was an option, I would have helped Naruto find you sooner and drug you back myself." He admits and runs his fingers through her dark tresses.

"I think I would have liked that." The Uchiha woman informs him with a sexy smirk.

She quickly indulges in some afterglow cuddling. Suki quite liked this part. She'd never admit that she was a cuddler though. Thankfully, her lover was far too tactful to comment on this trait.

"And I know that I'm certainly going to enjoy the next two weeks. It's a pity that we have to go back so soon." Gaara observes and Suki nods in agreement.

Eventually, the lovers drift off to sleep in each other's arms. Suki was the first to wake in the morning. She smiles as she watches her husband sleep next to her.

Husband. That was going to take some getting used to. She was married and they were going to have a family.

Subconsciously, her hand automatically drifts to her stomach at that thought. Most people wouldn't notice, but she did. Suki had spent most of her life honing her body into becoming the ultimate killing machine. Her weight had almost never fluctuated more than a pound or two in either direction. So the fact that she felt a slight softness when she touched her belly instead of toned muscle, told her all that she needed to know.

Their baby was here with them. He or she was growing. Soon enough, she'd start to show in a way that others would notice. She was carrying the next generation of Uchiha and a Kage's child. People were going to notice and notice quickly.

"It's alright. You're safe with us. Your father and I won't let anything happen to you." She whispers to her still flat stomach.

Suki knew rationally that her child couldn't actually hear her. Even if he or she could, they wouldn't understand her. But she meant what she said.

It was never going to happen again. Suki would never allow another Uchiha Massacre. This time things would be different. This time her Clan would be reborn in a new village and the father of the first post massacre Uchihas was a Kage. They would be safe.

"I guess you're hungry." She murmurs when she suddenly felt a craving for pancakes.

The pregnant woman gently disentangles herself from her lover's arms and heads to the kitchen. She supposed cravings were a good sign. Maybe that meant that she wouldn't have to endure the indignity of Morning Sickness much longer.

"Well at least my baby is craving something normal like pancakes." She muses as she proceeds to make them.

Suki had heard all sorts of horror stories about food cravings from pregnant women. Some pregnant women ate the strangest things. Foods that they would never touch, otherwise. She was just glad that she wasn't one of these unfortunate women.

While she was distracted by her internal musings, Gaara woke up. He heard the sound of batter being stirred. Naturally, this aroused his interest. So he gets up and heads to the kitchen.

"Only you, could make pancakes sexy." He observes as he sneaks up behind her and wraps his arms around Suki's waist.

"Only you, could sneak up behind me like that and live to tell the tale. That's a rather dangerous gamble that you just took there." The raven haired woman warns him.

Gaara chuckles at this response. It was very Suki. Suki was always sassy and ready for a fight. That was just who his wife was.

"I'll be more careful in the future. How are you feeling?" He asks gently.

"Alright. I think our son or daughter likes pancakes." Suki replies.

"I do believe that most people share our child's fondness for pancakes. So I'm not overly concerned about that." Gaara informs her and kisses her cheek.

Suki smiles at his response. The Kazekage had an interesting sense of humor to say the least. It was rather dry. Most people would think his jokes were just very blunt observations. This was not true though.

"That's true. I suppose I'll hold off on panicking just yet." The Uchiha tells him.

"Good. We wouldn't want you to worry yourself sick, especially in your fragile condition." The red head says with a smirk.

He knew that he was asking for it. Suki never liked to be viewed as weak. So him being overprotective, drove her crazy. He found it rather cute really.

Despite this, Gaara was rather good at determining just how far he could tease his wife before she would snap. The young Kage had an excellent sense of self-preservation. It had served him well as a ninja all these years and now it was serving him well as a husband.

"Mmm I'm pregnant, but my chakra works just fine. Do you need another Chidori to the shoulder to remind you of this fact?" She asks.

"I was only teasing, my love. Those pancakes do smell good. I'm fortunate to have such a fantastic lover and wonderful cook for my wife." He states and places a kiss to the top of her head.

Suki rolls her eyes. It was rather obvious what he was trying to do. He was trying to butter her up, so that she wouldn't Chidori him for his smart aleck comment.

"One of these days, that isn't going to work." She mutters in annoyance.

"One of these days, what isn't going to work?" Gaara asks, feigning confusion.

"Your attempts to butter me up, won't save you from getting beaten up. You're lucky that I love you and that you are smarter than the loser." The raven haired woman informs him.

Gaara chuckles. Suki would always be feisty. Idly, he wonders if their son or daughter would be the same way. He decides to examine that thought another day though. Right now, his main objective was to avoid a Chidori to the shoulder or other more important body parts.

"Well I shall count my blessings that it worked today then." He tells her and Suki just smiles.

"I love you." She says as she wraps her arms around his neck and kisses him.

"I love you too. More than anything. You are right about Nala though. We really should get her some catnip or something. She is the reason we are together, after all." Gaara says after returning the kiss.

"Yes, we should definitely get her some catnip." Suki agrees.


	15. Chapter 15

We're the Same

 **Author's Note:** Thanks for the reviews. I hope you all enjoy this chapter.

 **Chapter Notation:** This chapter takes place two months after the last one.

Chapter 15

"Suki, are you alright?" Gaara asks in concern when he notices his wife winces at lunch.

"Yes, I'm fine. The baby just kicked is all." The raven haired woman assures him.

Suki was now five months pregnant and that was made rather obvious by two facts. Her formerly flat stomach was now round enough that anyone could tell she was pregnant just by looking at her and their child was apparently a kicker. Idly, Gaara wondered if they would end up being a Taijutsu Specialist.

"Oh. Can I feel it?" He asks.

"Gaara, you're their father. You don't need to ask permission to touch my stomach. I just don't like it when random people do it in public. It's as though they think that my being pregnant gives them some sort of license to touch me." She says and rolls her eyes.

Gaara chuckles. Yes, he could remember more than one incident where some unsuspecting villager had been only a breath or two away from getting a Chidori. Suki deeply cherished her personal space. So the Uchiha woman hadn't been particularly happy when random strangers wanted to touch her now swollen belly.

"I love you." He says simply as he places his hand on her stomach, hoping to feel a kick.

"I love you too." Suki replies and smiles as she gives him a quick kiss.

The red head returns it with a smile. That's when he felt it. Yes, it was definitely a kick. Amazing. Their child was really in there and apparently rather active.

"Incredible. I felt it. Their definitely a Taijutsu Specialist in the making." He muses and Suki laughs.

"Mmm maybe. I guess we'll see. We should probably get going. Our doctor's appointment is in fifteen minutes and we don't want to be late." The pregnant woman points out.

"We can be late, if we desire. I'm Kazekage. Surely, they are not foolish enough to reschedule on us, but I suppose you're right. In the interest of good manners, we should get going." The Kage says as he offers Suki his hand and she takes it.

Suki rolls her eyes playfully. She knew that Gaara wasn't serious. He would never abuse his authority in such a fashion. Though he wasn't above making jokes about doing so.

"We both know that you wouldn't actually do that." The raven haired ninja says as they head towards the hospital.

"You're right. I wouldn't, but it sounded good." He states as they walk inside the hospital.

Suki smiles when she felt his arm slung around her waist. Gaara was very protective of her and the baby. It was a rare moment when he let her out of his sight during her pregnancy. She thought it was sweet really.

"Ah Lord Kazekage and Lady Suki. It's good to see you. You must be excited. If you like, you can find out the gender today." Their medic greets them.

She was an ancient medic ninja. Suki was pretty sure that she was at least seventy, perhaps eighty. Her age didn't matter though. The woman still had more chakra control today than even Suki had at the moment. She might not be terribly powerful in combat, but her ability to use medical jutsu was almost unparalleled.

"Do you want to find out or be surprised?" Gaara asks Suki as he caresses her cheek.

"I'd like to know, if you are ready. If not, I'm alright with being surprised." She replies.

"Alright. We'd like to know if we are having a son or daughter." The Kazekage informs Mitsu.

Mitsu was the name of their medic. The elderly woman nods and has Suki lay on the exam table. She smiles and prepares the equipment.

"Now, I am warning you. This is going to be cold." Mitsu states with kind brown eyes as she takes out the gel.

"That's alright. I can handle it." Suki assures her and the silver haired woman nods as she places the gel over Suki's belly.

"AHH! TH-AT'S LIKE ICE!" The pregnant woman shrieks and her medic just shakes her head in amusement.

Mitsu warned every expectant mother that the gel was cold. For some reason, none of them believed her. That never got old, she muses to herself as she continues with the procedure.

"I did warn you, My Lady. Ah there we go. That's your baby. Now let's see if we can get a better look to determine the gender." Mitsu says as she points at the screen.

Gaara and Suki smile as they glance up at the image of their child on the screen. This was the first time that they had really SEEN him or her. Unfortunately, it looked like their child was either shy or very stubborn.

It took the better part of a half hour for Mitsu to finally determine the gender. Their child seemed to know what was going on or Mitsu had horrible luck. Suki wasn't really sure which was the case. She supposed it didn't matter though. Eventually, the medic was able to get a good look.

"Congratulations, Lord Kazekage and Lady Suki. It seems that the Sand Village is going to have our very own princess soon enough." She says happily.

Gaara blinks. He didn't know why he was so surprised. It was a fifty-fifty shot. It was either going to be a girl or a boy. For some reason though, hearing it from Mitsu made it seem more real.

"Well I'm sure she'll be as beautiful as her mother. Though for the sake of the boys her age, I do hope she doesn't inherit Suki's temper." He teases and Suki lightly swats him for that.

"I heard that." She grumbles and the red head shakes his head in amusement as he kisses her.

Suki smiles and kisses back. They were going to have a daughter. Now they would just have to pick out a suitable name. Hmm.

Meanwhile in the Leaf Village, Shino's insects were spying on the former council members. Unfortunately for them, they weren't aware of this fact. Then again, most people would never suspect that bugs were really spies.

"This is the height of lunacy. I can't believe that the Kazekage married her. What was he thinking?" The woman asks.

"Well you know what they say about men. We can only think with one head at a time. It's obvious he was thinking with the wrong one. Then again, perhaps he really is just a gambler. It's possible that he saw the potential advantages of being with her. Their child will likely have the Sharingan and possibly his sand abilities. The Sand gets a bloodline and an economic boom from her moving there." Another of their members reasons.

The woman frowns. That was true. She never would have thought that the Kazekage would be so reckless though. It seemed to go against his fundamental nature.

"The Uchiha is pregnant. If we wait a little longer, she'll be too heavily pregnant to be able to fight at full capacity. If we catch her while she's off guard, we can prevent the Sand from getting the extra bloodline and most likely another Great Ninja War down the line. The Uchihas do have a history of insanity." They reason.

Shino's eyes narrow. He might not be friends with Suki, but she was a pregnant woman for Godsakes. How much lower could you get than to threaten someone in that condition?

Naruto had asked him to keep an eye on these people and it seemed he had a good reason to ask. They were snakes. The entire lot of them. With that in mind, he unleashes some of his insects on them. The special kind.

"The poison in their stingers will knock them out temporarily. Then I can take them back to Naruto and he can decide what to do with the trash." He mutters.

Shino was vaguely aware of the elderly Leaf Villagers crying out slightly when stung. He couldn't help but smirk at that reaction. Good. They were plotting an assassination. They should feel uncomfortable.

When they finally passed out, he walks over to them and retrieves them. It didn't take him long to drag them to Naruto's home. He knocks on the door and waits for Naruto to answer.

"Hey, Shino. Wait. That's not the former Council is it?" The blonde asks in confusion when he sees that his friend was dragging several unconscious people behind him.

"It's them. My insects were spying on these vermin as you requested. They were all plotting to have Suki assassinated while she was heavily pregnant. It seems they didn't like the idea of the Sand Village gaining an advantage over the Leaf in a bloodline and were worried that the children might become psychotic later on." He informs Naruto.

The blonde blinks. He had known that the Council was far from saintly. Still the blonde had never imagined they would go this far.

"Thanks, Shino. I knew that we could count on you. Don't worry. We'll take care of them. For now, let's just toss them in the prison and I'll write Gaara and Suki. They have a right to know what just happened." The sapphire eyed ninja says.

Shino nods his head in agreement. That sounded like the reasonable plan. He heads off to toss the treacherous scum into the prison while Naruto pens his letter.

Meanwhile back in the Sand, Gaara was working on some paperwork and Suki was glancing at a book of baby names. The two of them had decided that in the interest of Gaara ever getting any actual work done, it was best that she not come into his office while he was working. So she was in the living room and on the couch as she flipped through the pages.

"I wanted to say that I'm sorry." Kankuro says as he walks over to her.

"Sorry for what?" Suki asks as she looks up from the book and directs her attention towards the puppet master.

Damn. She was really going to make him say this, wasn't she? Kankuro wasn't entirely certain if she was genuinely confused or if she was just feeling slightly sadistic and wanted to watch him squirm.

He supposed it didn't matter. Either way, Kankuro knew that he owed her an apology. She was his brother's wife. His wife who he clearly was head over heels with and she was pregnant. The last thing he wanted to do was to make their relationship was strained one. That would only hurt his relationship with Gaara and his niece or nephew later on.

"For giving you and Gaara such a hard time. I didn't mean to be a jerk. I was just trying to look out for my brother. You just had such a colorful history that it was hard to believe at first that you had turned over a new leaf." He states.

"Was that an intentional pun about my former village or just an expression?" The raven haired woman asks in amusement.

"A little of both, I suppose. I mean it though. I'm sorry that I tried to dissuade you two from being together. Clearly, you are happy. You're expecting a family. I'm not going to get in the way of that." The Sand Ninja continues.

Suki smiles. It was nice to hear him actually say it. Truth be told, Suki had been a little worried about what her relationship with her brother-in-law was going to be like. She did want her child to have the chance to be close to her aunt and uncle. She obviously didn't have any blood relatives for them to be close to. So that just made Gaara's family all the more important.

"It's good to hear that. I can't blame you. Were I in your position, I likely would have behaved far worse. I do have a bloody history and I can understand why you would be concerned. I do love him though. I want you to know that. I didn't plan on falling in love with him or moving here, but I did." The Jonin says.

Kankuro nods. He believed her when she said that. Truthfully, he was happy that his brother had found love. Though it was a little hard to wrap his mind around the fact that Gaara was about to be a father.

Still it was hard to deny that reality when it was so obvious. Suki was five months pregnant and definitely showing now. It looked like Gaara and the formerly last Uchiha must have still be having quite enamored with each other.

"Thanks. Well I'm going to go. I have a mission. I just wanted to get that out of the way before my niece or nephew was born." He says awkwardly.

"Niece." Suki says simply as she flips another page in the baby book.

"Wait. What?" Kankuro asks in confusion because he wasn't entirely certain if he had heard her correctly or not.

Suki smiles slyly. It was fun to mess with Kankuro. Maybe she was a little sadistic, but she enjoyed it. She enjoyed it more than she should have really.

"We went to the doctor today. Gaara and I are having a girl. So she will be your niece." The raven haired woman explains.

"Oh. You are having a girl. That's great!" Kankuro says and Suki nods proudly.

"Well I'll see you later. Take it easy. You don't need to be doing anything crazy, while you are pregnant." The puppet master says as he darts out the door.

A few days later, Gaara frowns as he reads the mail. There was one letter from the Leaf Village. It was from Naruto. For some reason, the red head got a bad feeling just from seeing that letter and that was before he read it.

"What's wrong?" Suki asks as she walks out of the bathroom, clad in only a white bathrobe.

"It's a letter from Naruto." He says.

"Mmm what's it say?" She asks as she saunters over to him.

For a moment, Gaara allowed himself to be distracted. The sight of his soaking wet, nearly naked wife was quite the glorious one. Idly, he muses he had a problem. He was becoming a sex addict.

"I don't know yet. I just had a bad feeling about it." He admits.

"Well let's see what it says, before we start panicking." Suki replies as she opens the scroll and reads.

 _ **Dear Gaara and Suki,**_

 _ **Congrats on the pregnancy! I hope everything is going okay and that was a really awesome wedding! People are going to be talking about that one for a long time! Do you guys know if it's a boy or a girl yet?**_

 _ **Anyway, I need you to come to the Leaf. There's something that you guys gotta see. I don't want to make you come out here later for obvious reasons. So the sooner, the better.**_

 _ **Love, Naruto.**_

Suki raises an eyebrow. That was vague to put it mildly. In some distant part of her mind, she acknowledged that she was proud of the loser. He had finally learned how to be subtle. Mostly though, she was worried.

"What do you think?" She inquires.

"I think that sounds disturbingly vague. That means that whatever he wants to show us, is important. We should leave for the Leaf Village as soon as possible." Her husband says.

Suki nods. She quickly begins packing. The sooner they got to the bottom of this, the better in her mind.

"Suki, what are you doing?" Gaara asks with a raised eyebrow at his wife's response.

"Packing. We are going to the Leaf Village, aren't we?" The raven haired woman replies innocently.

"Yes, we are. I can handle the packing. You're pregnant. You should be resting." He informs her.

"Gaara, I'm five months pregnant. I'm not crippled or terminally ill. I can handle some packing." The young woman retorts and eeps when she feels him lightly push her against the wall.

The red head could see that this was going to be an issue. Suki was going to be stubborn. Most likely, she was going to drive him half crazy by the time she had their daughter. He wasn't going to let her overexert herself though.

"I know that you can handle it, but let me take care of it. Let me take care of you." He whispers and kisses her forehead.

Suki smiles slyly. Gaara was rather good at taking care of her. She knew what way he meant it, but her hormones were all over the place. Apparently, it was rather common for a pregnant woman to experience an increase in desire at this point in her pregnancy. So she figured that was why her mind went to rather inappropriate places and quickly.

He was trying to be sweet. Gaara wasn't trying to seduce her. By now, she knew the difference. Still there was no way that she wasn't going to take advantage of that opening.

"Mmm well I do like it when you take care of me." She purrs at him seductively and nibbles on his ear.

"Suki, don't tempt me. You're already half naked and wet. I only have so much self-control. We really should leave as soon as possible. I doubt that Naruto would have sent out that letter over nothing." He reasons.

Suki finds herself sighing because she knew that her husband was right. It wouldn't be like Naruto to panic like that. Something was going on and more than likely it wasn't good.

"You're right. I guess I'll just sit on the bed and watch you pack." She says.

"Good girl." The Kazekage says, pleased that Suki was going to be reasonable.

Suki rolls her eyes at the good girl remark and sits on the bed. If anyone else had said that, she probably would have fired off a fireball though. Not Gaara though. She could allow him some leniency when it came to his playful teasing.

"You are so lucky that I love you." She warns him.

"Oh I know. Believe me, I know." Gaara says as he continues packing.

In what seemed like no time at all, the Kazekage had completed this task. Thankfully, the trip to the Leaf Village was uneventful. That was a damn good thing for Gaara's nerves.

Quite frankly, Suki for the most part didn't seem to have altered her behavior that much during her pregnant and didn't seem anxious. He on the other hand was very nervous. He was constantly worried that something would go wrong.

"Gaara, relax. I'm over halfway through with my pregnancy. So far I've been perfectly healthy. There's nothing to worry about." Suki says as they walk into the village.

"I know that in my head, but I can't help but worry about you and our daughter. That's all. Am I really that transparent?" He whispers.

Suki smiles and kisses his cheek. She was fortunate that she had such a devoted husband. Really, it was heartwarming. Though she would prefer it, if he didn't have a heart attack before the baby was born because he worked himself into a frenzy of nerves.

"Not to most people, but it is to me. I know you better than them though." The raven haired woman assures him.

That's when they saw Naruto approaching them. Suki noticed that her friend was looking rather grim. Uh oh. That set off alarm bells in her head. Naruto generally didn't do grim.

"Suki! Gaara! You made it! I'm so glad to see you! How about we go back to the Hokage Office and we can catch up?" He offers.

Gaara raises an eyebrow. Naruto seemed to be putting on a show for anyone that might be listening. Whatever he had to tell them was bad. Very bad.

"That sounds like a good idea to me." The red head says as the three of them head back to Naruto's office.

"Alright. Spill it, loser. What the Hell is going on? Why did you send that cryptic letter and why are we here?" Suki demands once they were all alone.

The blonde sighs. He knew that Suki and Gaara weren't going to react to the news well. Still he had to tell them. The married couple had a right to know what had almost happened to them.

"I'll tell you, but first you have to both promise not to freak out. I promise that they are going to be punished in whatever manner you think is right. But I don't want you to destroy my office in a fit of rage or something." He says nervously.

If they hadn't been anxious before, that certainly would have done it. What could possibly be bad enough that Naruto thought that there was a very real possibility that his office might get destroyed? The couple grew even more uneasy at that statement.

"We promise." Suki informs him.

"Okay. Well good. You know how the Council has been a pain in the ass lately? That's what I meant by bad weather in my last letter." He begins awkwardly.

Gaara nods sympathetically. There were few things more annoying than dealing with a rogue Council while you were a Kage. He had had more than his fair share of issues with his own.

"Yes, we both surmised as much. What happened?" He presses his friend gently.

"I had Shino spy on them using his insects." Naruto begins.

Suki nods. She was surprised that Naruto could be that devious. Though the pregnant woman decides to explore that thought on another day. Right now, they had more important things to worry about.

"Yeah. Then what happened?" She asks.

"Apparently, they were hoping to assassinate you in a couple months. You'd be more vulnerable when you were heavily pregnant and your guard would be lower. Shino knocked them out and they are sitting in jail now. I figured I should let you guys know what happened." The blonde finishes.

Gaara blinks. They were going to assassinate his pregnant wife?! Suddenly, it was if he was possessed by the demon again. That Council was NOT going to live to see another sunrise. He quickly teleports off in a swirl of sand.

"Fuck! That could have gone better!" Naruto says.

"YA THINK?!" Suki growls as the two of them teleport after the very pissed off red head.

Thankfully, they got there before Gaara could kill the Council. Suki decides to distract her husband. She pulls him down into a heated kiss while Naruto gets between the Kazekage and the council members.

"Gaara, as much as I would love to slit their throats right now, we have to be smart about this and you know that." Suki says after breaking the kiss.

"You're right. They are going to be publicly executed in the most painful way possible." He growls.

"Exactly. I knew there was a reason that I loved you." Suki says with a smile.

Naruto was a little disturbed by the fact that the couple was apparently bonding over torture, but decides not to ponder that too much. Damn. That had been a close one. Too close.

"Right. So you want a public trail then?" He asks.

"Yes, we want a public trial. They are all going to die in agony and in utter disgrace. There will be no place on the Memorial Stone for them." Gaara seethes.

"Got it. Got it! We'll have a trial. Relax, Gaara. We aren't going to let anything happen to Suki or your child." Naruto assures him.

"Damn right, we aren't." Gaara mutters as he wraps his arms protectively around his wife and kisses her cheek while glaring hatefully at the cowering council members.

Their blood was running cold. None of them had ever seen a look of hatred as thorough as the one that the Kazekage was giving them. At that moment, they were all thinking the same thing. Suki hadn't been the one that they should have been worried about. Gaara was.


	16. Chapter 16

We're the Same

 **Author's Note:** Thanks for the reviews. I hope you all enjoy this chapter.

 **Chapter Notation:** Unless otherwise stated, this takes place four months after the previous chapter.

Chapter 16

Four months later and Gaara was forced to flee the delivery room for his own safety. Suki was a dangerous ninja after all. She was currently a dangerous woman in a lot of pain. Childbirth was apparently excruciating.

"I'd rather fight M-adara again than go through this!" The beautiful pregnant woman snarls out.

Gaara winces form his safe position behind the door. He wanted to help his wife. He wanted to be there for Suki. Once the first contraction hit though, she had promptly told him to get the Hell out of there for his own safety.

The red head considered himself to be someone with good survival instincts. So he had wisely done as his wife asked. Still he couldn't help but feel helpless as he heard his Suki cry out. She was far from the only woman on this floor to do so though.

"Don't worry, Lord Kazekage. This is perfectly normal for pregnant women, especially female ninjas. Once she has that child in her arms, she will forget all about this unpleasantness." Another Sand Ninja informs him.

It was then that Gaara noticed he wasn't the only expectant father in the hallway. There were about three other men with him. It looked like they had either been kicked out as well or scurried out of the delivery room for their own safety.

"I hope so. I hate to see her in so much pain." He murmurs.

The other man nods sympathetically. Gaara was aware of the sound of obscenities being screamed at the husbands who had elected to stay inside the delivery room. This was the floor of the hospital where all the mothers would give birth.

Idly, the Kazekage considers the possibility that the Sand Village might be experiencing a Baby Boom. He dismisses that thought as quickly as it came though. Right now, Suki and his daughter were the most important thing to focus on. Now and forever, he quickly corrects himself.

"Everyone hates to see the one that they love in pain. That's only natural. She's already been in labor all day though. I imagine your son or daughter will be born soon." He offers.

Gaara nods. It had been a horrifying day to say the least. He shuddered to think what kind of agony was necessary to make a woman with Suki's pain tolerance cry out like that. He couldn't even imagine what she must be going through.

Meanwhile Suki was seriously considering strangling the kindly medic who was trying to help her. Was she out of her mind? How could she possibly remain cheerful when someone next to her was in such agony?!

"It's alright, My Lady. You are doing wonderfully. Now push." The medic instructs Suki.

"This is wonderful?!" Suki snaps at her.

She wanted nothing more than for her child to be born. The eldest Uchiha wanted this agony to go away and to hold her daughter in her arms. Then she was going to engage in a nice cuddle with her loving husband and she was NOT going to get out of bed for at least a week. Naturally, he would be morally obligated to wait on her hand and foot!

"Yes, you're almost there. Just a few more pushes. I know that it hurts, My Lady. It's just the price that we as women pay to bring the next generation into the world." She assures her.

Suki knew it was wrong, but she was really close to losing it. She was really close to just screaming every curse word that she could think of at the Sand Villager. Hell, Suki was feeling rather creative. She might make a few new vulgarities to hurl at the elderly woman while she was at it!

"Well it's not fair. Men should have to shoulder at least half of this pain." She grumbles as she pushes again.

The contractions were coming faster and faster. She knew that her daughter would be born soon. With that in mind, Suki somehow summoned the will to push again and again.

A few minutes later, a loud cry is heard. The daughter of Suki Uchiha and Gaara Sabaku certainly was not shy about announcing her presence. Suki watches anxiously as the medic checks to ensure that the baby was healthy.

"Congratulations. You have a beautiful, healthy baby girl." She says with a smile and her assistant helps clean Suki up while the elderly woman places the newborn infant in her arms.

Suki smiles and holds her daughter protectively as she proceeds to nurse her. While she was distracted, someone must have told Gaara that it was safe to come in. Suki almost laughs at how gingerly her husband approached his new family. Clearly, he suspected that Suki might Chidori him or something.

"Are you alright? Is she alright?" He asks as he strides over to her bedside.

"The medic says she's perfectly healthy. She's so beautiful." Suki says with a smile as she glances down at their daughter.

Gaara looks down at the small bundle in Suki's arms. He noted with pride that their daughter had his blood red hair and Suki's beautiful ivory skin and facial features. Her nose, mouth, and even ears were all Suki. Though the newborn had his aqua colored eyes and had inherited his feral black markings around them.

"Yes, she is. Just like her mother." Gaara says as he kisses the top of her head.

"I hope you know that you are still waiting on me hand and foot for at least a week after we get home. I'm not leaving the bed." Suki informs him.

Gaara looks at her in amusement. As if he was ever going to protest his sexy wife, not wanting to leave their bed. Did he look stupid?

"I don't have any issue with that. She certainly has a healthy appetite." The Kazekage muses as he watches his daughter nurse vigorously.

"She's like her father that way. Loves sucking on my breasts." Suki says smugly while she cuddles the nursing infant closer.

The medic starts giggling when she heard Lady Suki say that. Well it looked as though she was well on her way to recovery. Certainly, the Kazekage's wife was feeling feisty. That was always a good sign.

"Well they are exceptional breasts. Who could really blame me?" Gaara replies and smiles down at his daughter.

She was absolutely adorable. He had no idea how he had helped to make something so cute and fragile. She was so tiny. Though Gaara logically realized that their child was likely a normal size for a newborn.

"Mmm that's true. I think I know what I wish to name her. Karura. After your mother." Suki observes after thinking about it for a moment.

"Are you sure? I wouldn't mind it, if we named her after your mother or gave her another name." Gaara assures her.

"I'm sure. She loved you enough that her will carried on even after her death. It seems only fitting really. Hopefully, our daughter will have a happier ending." Suki says as she kisses Karura's forehead.

Gaara smiles and nods. Kaurra it would be then. Now he had three women in his family. Temari, Suki, and Karura.

"Well Kaurra is beautiful." He says as runs his fingers through his wife's dark tresses affectionately.

A few days later, the young family was back in the Kazekage mansion. Suki was laying in the bed and watching with great amusement as Gaara attempted to change their daughter. He was completely hopeless at it, but she did have to give him credit for trying.

"Do you want me to do it? I don't mind." Suki offers.

"No. You should be resting. Besides, I have to figure this out eventually. The odds are good that sooner or later, I'll be alone with her and have to do this someday. I might as well figure it out now. I run a village. How difficult can it really be to change an infant?" He inquires.

Karura seemed to think that her father was playing some sort of game. She giggled and squirmed as Gaara attempted to complete his task. That only naturally made it harder.

"Apparently, it can be rather difficult. I do appreciate that you are trying though. Gaara, I really don't mind." Suki insists.

"Suki, I can do this. What kind of father can't even manage something this simple?" The red head replies in a slightly huffy tone as he gets the diaper off of the newborn and places another on.

"Mmm it's nothing to be ashamed of. A lot of people have trouble at first." The dark haired beauty assures him.

Gaara shakes his head. No. He could do this and he would do this. He was going to take care of his wife and child and that was that. Thankfully, Karura appeared to be a rather happy baby. He didn't know what he would have done, if she had started crying.

"AH HA! I did it!" Gaara calls out triumphantly a few minutes later.

"Mmm yes, you did." Suki praises him and gestures for her lover to join her on the bed.

Gaara smiles and hops onto the bed. He carefully lays back and wraps on arm around Suki, while the other situates their daughter in the new mother's arms. That was better.

"I told you that I could do it." The Kazekage says smugly.

"Mmm yes, you did. You take such good care of us." She says and kisses him.

She'd humor him. It amused her how he looked as though he had just won some great battle in the war. Truly, it was adorable really.

Gaara kisses back. He felt tremendously pleased with himself. He had figured out how to care for his daughter and had a his beautiful wife nestled safely in his arms. What could be better than that?

"Always. Oh it looks like Nala wants to meet Karura." He muses as the feline jumps onto the bed.

"Is that safe? She is a wild animal." Suki asks in concern.

"She's been domesticated for awhile. Besides, we are right here if anything happens." Gaara assures her and has his sand surround the newborn, just in case.

Nala paws over to the newborn and sniffs her curiously. This was new. It was like a human, but smaller.

Karura coos and giggles. She didn't know what that fury thing was, but she liked it. She tries to reach out her chubby little hands towards the kitty and Nala licks her face.

"Mmm I guess it's okay. Everything is working out just fine. Well for almost everyone. The Council got what they deserved." Suki muses.

"Yes, they did." Gaara practically growls as he remembers exactly what happened.

 _It didn't take long for Naruto and Gaara to organize an international trial. It was a grand public spectacle. The Kazekage apparently wanted to hurt them where it would be most painful them. Public opinion._

 _These were proud people. He knew that. They got off on holding highly respected positions in the Leaf Village. So to fall so far from grace in front of such a large crowd would be the ultimate nightmare for them._

 _"We are here today to hear the case being brought against the Leaf's former council members. They are on trial for the attempted assassination of Suki Uchiha and her unborn child. How do you plead?" The judge asks._

 _"We are innocent. We were just doing what must be done. The Uchiha Clan has a history of insanity. The Curse of Hatred is well documented going back generations. That child will be far too powerful to allow to flourish. He or she will inherit the Sharingan and potentially the usage of Gaara's sand. Surely, you can all see why it has to be done." One of them pleads._

 _There were mixed reactions from the crowd. Mostly it was out of horror. Horror that that essentially the Leaf's former Council was admitting that they had been plotting genocide in a way. Horror that an unborn child had almost been murdered because of who its mother was. And yes, some horror over what the Kazekage was likely going to do to them for threatening his family._

 _"That was not your call to make. Suki Uchiha is now a citizen of the Sand Village. Therefore any distasteful decisions like that, would first fall to the Sand to decide. If you wished to take such disgusting countermeasures, you would have had to convene with the Sand. You didn't do that for obvious reasons. No decent man is going to condone the murder of his pregnant wife." The judge replied._

 _The former Council members gulped. All of them realized that this wasn't going in their favor. They could very well be living their last day on Earth._

 _"Well as they have admitted guilt. I don't really see a reason to continue this trial. You attempted to assassinate the wife of a foreign leader and a pregnant woman at that. Not to mention, this qualifies as attempted genocide. I'm afraid that this is completely out of my hands. The penalty for any one of these things would be death, but all three? Well that's unforgivable. Lord Kazekage and Lady Suki, you may have them executed in whatever manner you see fit." The judge informed them._

 _"Excellent. I want them brought to the Sand and thrown in our prison. We shall take care of it from there." The red head said._

 _Soon enough, it was done. The former Council members were sent to the Sand. Suki wanted to punish them herself, but Gaara insisted that she shouldn't be exposed to such filth any longer than necessary._

 _"I promise you that they won't come near you or our daughter again." Gaara told her and kissed her forehead._

 _"Alright. I would love to help though. Make them suffer." Suki requested as she brushed her thumb against his lip suggestively._

 _Gaara smirked and sucked on her thumb. He loved this woman. He loved her and their child more than anything. That was precisely why the Council had to die. Preferably as painfully as possible. He wasn't going to allow anyone or anything to take his family away from him._

 _"Trust me, I will. No one is ever going to be foolish enough to threaten our family again, when I am done with them. I'll be along in a few hours. You should get some rest, my love." Gaara told Suki as he placed a soft kiss to her cheek._

 _"Alright. I'll be waiting for you." The raven haired woman says as she started off._

 _She glanced back at him briefly. Gaara didn't fail to notice that she gave him a sultry smile, before she completely departed. He allowed himself a brief moment to ponder how fortunate he was to have found love and then decided to get back to business._

 _He toyed with them for hours. It had been many years since he had last truly enjoyed hurting people. For them, Gaara made an exception though. They deserved to suffer for what they had been planning to do. By the time he was done with them, there was nothing left to bury._

 _Feel pleased with himself, he quickly returned back to the Kazekage Mansion. More specifically, he entered their bedroom. Gaara smiled when he saw his gorgeous wife resting on their bed and walked over to her._

 _"Suki, are you awake?" He whispered._

 _"Mmm." She murmured in her sleep and Gaara shook his head as he climbed into the bed and laid next to her._

 _She was definitely asleep. That was alright though. His wife was heavily pregnant. Suki needed her sleep._

 _He smiled and wrapped his arms around her. The Council would never threaten their family again. Suki and his daughter were safe and that was all that mattered. That was the last thought on his mind, before he drifted off to sleep._

"It's okay, Gaara. Their gone now. Hear that, baby? Daddy protected us from the bad people." Suki says with a smile as she plays with her daughter's tiny toes.

Well tiny compared to her own. Suki realizes that they were probably perfectly normally sized for a newborn baby girl. Still everything about her daughter was adorable to her.

"And I always will, protect the both of you." Gaara says as he smiles and holds Suki protectively.

It was still such a surreal feeling. He knew that cute child in Suki's arms was theirs and yet it was hard to believe. They had made something so fragile and innocent together. Every little movement that she made fascinated him.

"Mmm well know." Suki assures him.

Three months later, Suki had recovered from giving birth and the three of them were out in the Sand's outdoor marketplace. Thankfully, their stroller had nice cover over it to protect Karura from the punishing heat of the desert Sun. That and Temari had made a small fan to put inside the stroller to keep the baby cool.

"Awe, what an beautiful baby." One of the Sand Villagers says as they look into the stroller.

Suki was getting used to this. It was something of a given that people would want to see their daughter. After all, in a way she was their princess. Karura didn't mind either.

If anything, the elder Uchiha thought that she seemed to enjoy the attention. Their daughter was absolutely fearless. She never cried when strange people stuck their head into her stroller. She just calmly watched them and glanced at her parents as if seeking reassurance that these were nice people and not a threat.

"Thank you." Gaara says smoothly.

Once she determined that her parents weren't worried, Kaurra was quite content to allow people to satisfy their curiosity. Had Suki been in her place, she wasn't entirely sure that she would have been nearly as patient.

"You're welcome. She's growing so fast. She'll be entering the Academy before you know it." The elderly woman continues good-naturedly.

"Mmm yes, she will." Suki agrees with a smile as she holds Gaara's hand.

Her husband was the model of diplomatic grace in these situations. No matter how many times different people made the exact same comments, Gaara always treated it their pronouncements as if they were unique. She really didn't know how he did it.

"Ah there you guys are!" Naruto says happily as he bounds over.

"Naruto, what are you doing here?" Suki asks in confusion.

"Oh well. I just wanted to tell you guys the good news in person! Hinata is pregnant!" The blue eyed ninja says cheerfully and Suki blinks.

Damn. She never thought that she would see the day where Naruto would be a father. Had the world been tilted on its axis or something.

"That's wonderful news, Naruto. Congratulations. The two of you must be so thrilled." Gaara says with a smile.

"Yeah! You bet! Just think our kids can attend the International Academy together someday." The blonde says.

Suki shakes her head in amusement. She smiles and leans down. The two men couldn't hear what she said, but they knew when she was being sneaky.

"You make sure to keep the Mini loser in line. Alright? If he is stupid, don't hesitate to Chidori him or whack him with your sand. He'll likely be stubborn. So you have to be firm with him." Suki explains and her daughter coos happily.

"Suki, what did you just say to her?" Naruto demands.

"I was just giving my daughter a little helpful advice for the future. That's all." She says slyly.

Gaara raises an eyebrow. He'd simply find out what his wife said later. For now, he hugs his friend in congratulations. He was truly happy for Naruto and perhaps the boisterous ninja was right. Their children might attend the International Academy together. That would be nice.

"Is your wife with you?" He asks.

"Oh yeah. Hinata is here. I left her at the hotel. I figured it'd be good to get her some rest. Plus, I figured that maybe I'd find something to surprise her with at the market." Naruto says.

"Good. I'm certain that you will find something she will like. Well we should really finish with our shopping and head home. Karura is due for her nap." Gaara explains.

Karura yawns cutely and looks around sleepily. She recognized the loud one. He was a friend of mommy's and daddy's. So she wasn't worried about him.

"Oh yeah. Right. Of course." Naruto says and Gaara pays for their purchases.

Soon enough, they were back home. The red head smiles as he puts his daughter to bed. She was such a good girl. The Sand's little princess was already half asleep.

"Good night." He says as he places a kiss on her forehead and walks off with Suki.

"I can't believe that Naruto is actually having a kid." Suki notes in amusement.

"I can't either. Well that child is going to be an unholy terror once he or she reaches the Terrible Twos, if they inherit Naruto's energy." Gaara observes.

Suki couldn't help but nod in agreement and laugh. That was definitely true. Thankfully, their daughter appeared to be a rather even tempered child. Nothing seemed to phase her and as long as she was fed and clean, she was happy.

"That's true. Mmm well speaking of energy, I missed you." Suki whispers as she caresses his cheek.

"I'm afraid that I don't understand. How can could you have missed me? I haven't gone anywhere." The red head replies in a baffled voice.

"I didn't mean in that way. I meant that I MISSED you." Suki says and between every word she brushes her lips against hers in a seductive hint of a kiss.

Suddenly, it dawned on Gaara exactly what Suki was saying. Naturally, after having their first child, she needed time to recover. That was only expected. Regrettably, that meant that their intimacy had been somewhat limited. It looked like he wasn't the only one that missed being together in every way possible.

"I missed you as well. More than you will ever know." He tells her.

"I think that I have a pretty good idea." Suki says as she playfully pushes him onto the bed and straddles his waist.

Gaara certainly wasn't going to protest the glorious view that was his wife on top of him. She was stunning from every angle. Though he had to confess a certain fondness from this one.

Suki had been entirely accurate, when she referenced his adoration for her breasts. Then again, who could really blame him? Those were as he had said before, exceptional.

"Sand Sign." He says simply and a sign made out of sand forms on the outside of their doom reading _**Do Not Disturb.**_

"That was clever. I'm rather fortunate to have such a handsome and intelligent husband." Suki says as she kisses him.

"And I'm fortunate to have such a beautiful and intelligent wife." Gaara replies after returning the kiss.

They spent the rest of the night proving just how much they missed each other. It was a blur of soft caresses, heated moans, and tangled limbs. It was almost impossible to tell where one began and the other ended.

Sometime after the Sun rose, the two lovers fell asleep in each other's arms with contented smiles on their faces. For them, it was easy to drift of into the Land of Dreams because they knew their most precious people would be there, when they woke up.


	17. Chapter 17

We're the Same

 **Author's Note:** Thanks for the reviews. I hope you all enjoy epilogue of **We're the Same.** For those of you interested, feel free to check out my other stories. _**The Kazekage's Wife**_ and _**The Color Red**_ are the Sasuke x Gaara ones.

 **Chapter Notation:** This is set three years after the last one, unless otherwise indicated in a flashback.

Chapter 17

Suki smiles as she watches Karura lean over the crib. She was very curious about her two new baby brothers. To say the toddler was fascinated would be an understatement.

"Mommy, they're so little!" She exclaims.

"Of course they are. They are just babies. They'll get much bigger soon. Just like you did." Suki informs her and kisses the top of her eldest child's head lovingly.

Gaara chuckles. Quite frankly, he was just as amused by Kaura's reaction as his wife was. The twins were only a few days old. So their children still had to get used to each other.

"Oh. Okay!" Karura says as if considering that and deciding her mother wasn't trying to trick her.

Karura was extremely bright. The girl was only three, but most of the time she spoke in a manner that resembled a six year old. She was also achieving various milestones much faster than average.

For the most part, she was the perfect daughter. That was unless she had a temper tantrum. To be fair, she was only three. Temper tantrums were to be expected at that age, but hers could be dangerous. She had inherited Gaara's sand abilities and sometimes didn't know her own strength.

"Mhm." Suki says as she leans into her husband's loving embrace.

"How are you feeling?" Gaara whispers into her ear gently.

"Still sore. I'd be surprised if I didn't feel that way though. Pushing out two twin boys is not easy." The dark haired beauty says.

The Kazekage nods sympathetically. He really did wish that childbirth wasn't so painful. Still Suki was quite determined to restore her Clan. Three seemed a good start to him. Though he suspected that she would want at least one more child later on. For now, their family numbered five.

Naoki begins to cry. Suki shakes her head and smiles as she scoops up her eldest son in her arms and proceeds to nurse him with the cover over her. While Gaara certainly enjoyed getting an eyeful, it might be a bit awkward for their daughter.

"It's okay, baby. That's a good boy. You are just like your father." She muses.

Naoki's name meant honest. He certainly was very honest about how he felt. There was no mystery involved, especially when he was hungry. He definitely didn't mind letting everyone know exactly how he felt.

His identical twin Kenshin was more quiet. He was named after a famous ninja. As long as Kenshin was fed and clean, he was quite content just to quietly observe his surroundings.

"Their both going to be so spoiled. It's going to be very difficult for them to find a woman who comes anywhere close to matching your beauty." He states as he scoops up Karura in his arms and swings her around just the way that she liked.

"Wee! Faster! Faster, daddy! Faster!" She giggles.

Kenshin and Naoki both had inherited her raven black hair and Gaara's aqua eyes with his markings. Their skin was ivory cream colored like Suki's, but their facial features were all Gaara.

Anyone who looked at the twins, knew who their father was. There was no mystery. They were the very definition of a chip off the ole block. Well when it came to looks anyway.

"Alright." Gaara says as he swings her around faster and Suki blinks.

Karura was absolutely fearless. Perhaps a little too fearless sometimes. The Uchiha Matriarch was quite certain that despite Karura's thoughts to the contrary, she was not actually a rag doll.

"Gaara, don't you think that you are overdoing it a little bit?" She asks.

"Not really. She loves it." The red head replies as if that was self-explanatory.

Suki debated about arguing on that point. Karura loved ice cream too. That didn't mean that she should eat it everyday. After thinking about it for a moment, she just shakes her head. Let Gaara indulge her in this minor thing. Surely, if she was actually in pain, Karura would let them know.

"I love you." Suki says with a smile.

"I love you too. Apparently, so does Nala." Gaara notes with a chuckle as the Sand Cat fluffs Suki's legs.

Suki shakes her head in amusement and sets Naoki back down in the crib. She quickly kisses both of her sons and briefly tickles their tummies before bending down to scoop up the feline. It seemed like Naoki wasn't the only hungry member of the Uchiha-Sabaku household.

"Kitty!" Karura says as she leans over and pets Nala.

"Yes, kitty. A hungry kitty. I'll be right back." Suki says as she carries Nala out to the kitchen to find her something to eat.

Soon enough, Suki had given the feline a saucer of milk and some tuna. As an afterthought, she laid down Nala's favorite catnip mouse to her. Idly, she muses that Nala had to be the most spoiled cat on the planet.

She deserved it though. Without her, it was likely that she and Gaara never would have gotten together. In a way, Nala had done more to revive the Uchiha Clan than almost anyone else.

The next day, the Uzumaki family arrives. Naruto came to visit once every couple of months, if his schedule allowed it. Hinata and their son Dai generally came with him. It was rare that the blonde could stand to be parted from his family for more than a week or two at a time. (Not that Suki could blame him.) Sakura also was the same way. She rarely left the Leaf, now that she had a family with Lee there.

"Dai! I missed you!" Karura says as the sand pulls him straight over to her and the two hug.

"Hi! Look what daddy got me!" The young boy says as he shows his friend a fox plushie.

"Pretty!" She exclaims excitedly and the adults chuckle.

It was hard to believe, but Karura and Dai got along well. Apparently, this was mostly because Dai's favorite color was red and Karura found the Byakugan's lavender coloration fascinating. Naruto wasn't going to argue with it though.

"You sure you are okay to be up and about, already? I mean you just had the twins not that long ago." Naruto asks Suki.

"Yeah. I'm sure. I'm the wife of a Kazekage. Not much is going to keep me down for long. I'm not going to lie, I'd like to see you try to shove out two twin boys." Suki mutters and Gaara shakes his head as he kisses his wife's cheek affectionately.

Hinata nods sympathetically. She certainly understood the pain of childbirth. It was not a fun process to bring your children into this world. Still in her mind, it was more than worth it. She wouldn't trade Dai for anything.

"Yeah. I saw what Hinata went through. I'm definitely going to pass on that one." Naruto says with a laugh and Suki merely rolls her eyes in response.

"Well one can hardly blame him." The red head came to his friend's defense.

Suki shrugs. She couldn't argue with that. Still it wasn't really fair. She could tell that Hinata agreed with her. The bluenette was just far too polite to say so. Thankfully, Suki had never really been all that worried about being polite.

"Right um so how are the twins doing?" Naruto asks awkwardly.

"Wonderfully. Kenshin is on the quiet side and Naoki is very well expressive." Suki says proudly.

"Oh you mean that he's loud." Naruto says brightly.

Gaara smacks his forehead. He loved Naruto like a brother. Truly, he did. There was almost nothing that he wouldn't do for the other man, but sometimes he could be more than a little dense.

"He's vocal about expressing himself in an appropriate fashion. It's not as though he's a loudmouth, like you." Suki huffs and crosses her arms defensively.

Dai was unaware of how much trouble his father was in. He was just happy to be playing with Karura. She was his best friend and she seemed to like Mr. Fluffy as much as he did!

"What'd you name him?" Karura asks as she clutches the stuffed animal to her chest.

"Mr. Fluffy. Cause he's fluffy." Dai says as if this was some sage pronouncement and Karura nods.

"That makes sense. I have two little brothers now." She informs him.

Dai tilts his head to the side. He had heard about brothers and sisters. He didn't really understand what it meant, but Karura sounded happy about it. So it must have been a good thing.

"Oh that's nice!" He replies with a smile.

"Mhm. They are really little now. Mommy says that they are bigger. They finally got out of mommy's belly." The red headed toddler continues knowledgably.

Dai didn't understand it. How could two people be inside Suki's stomach? It must have been some sort of jutsu, he decides.

"That's good that she coughed them up." He agrees.

The blue haired Hyuga boy figured that must have been how Suki got them out of her belly. Sometimes when he ate something funny, he'd throw it up. Then it would come out of his tummy, through his mouth. Naturally, he assumed this was how Karura's brothers were born.

The play date goes off without incident. Which was something of a miracle. When Naoki had temper tantrums, people tended to get burned. When Kenshin had temper tantrums, people tended to get sparked or mildly electrocuted. There was also the fact that Karura's sand also came out to play when she was upset. Really, it was a miracle whenever a play date went off without incident.

"Well this was fun. Congratulations, by the way. You must be so thrilled to finally be able to hold the twins in your arms." Hinata says to Suki.

"Thank you. Yes, you have no idea how happy I am to actually be able to see them face to face now. The fact that I no longer look like a pufferfish is also quite nice." She muses.

"You were a very sexy pufferfish though." Gaara adds helpfully and Suki swats her husband lightly for that comment.

Gaara puts up his hands in an _**I Surrender Gesture.**_ Suki snorts playfully at his response. That was such a Gaara move.

"Well you two have fun. Remember Suki, you can't go full dominatrix on him for at least a few weeks, maybe a couple months yet. Actually, you had twins. I'd say months just to be on the safe side." Naruto says with a wink and quickly bounds off with his wife and son before the Uchiha woman could Chidori him for his cheek.

"He really is SUCH a loser." Suki mutters.

"He does have his moments where he acts more like a child than our actual children. I will concede that. Still it would be almost impossible to find a better friend than him." The red head replies.

"I can't argue with that. Where is Nala?" Suki asks.

Just then Nala came darting through the living room chasing after a REAL mouse. Karura giggles and seems to find that fascinating. Suki winces when the feline knocks over a vase and it shatters.

"Well I guess we can't really blame her for following her instincts. It's a pity though. I quite liked that vase." Suki pouts.

"I shall get you a new one." Her husband informs her and the dark beauty smiles.

"Mmm good. You spoil me. I like it." Suki tells him as she places a quick kiss to his lips.

Gaara smiles and returns the kiss. He never really thought that he would have this. Love and a family. A growing family. A beautiful wife, three children, and a cat.

"Good. Well in a few months, you can go full dominatrix on me. I believe that was how Naruto so delightfully put it." He muses.

"Mmm yes. That's what the idiot said. Though I'm surprised he even knows what that word means. Do you think that Hinata has been "educating" him?" Suki asks with a laugh.

"Well they do say that it's always the quiet ones." The red head offers as there was a knock on their door.

Suki goes to answer it. It was Kankuro and Temari. She raises an eyebrow wondering what they could want at this hour.

"Temari, Kankuro, what is it? Did something happen? Is the village under attack?" The Uchiha woman demands.

"No. It's just that the graduation ceremony for the Academy students is about to start. As the Kage family, it's recommended you be there. I know that it's really soon. You just had twins. So no one would blame you, if you don't feel up to it." Kankuro explains.

Gaara glances at Suki in concern. It was one thing to invite friends over. It was another to make a public appearance.

"I can handle it. Gaara can you get the stroller?" Suki asks.

"Are you sure? You really don't have to do this, if you aren't up to it. No one is going to think you are weak for wanting to take it easy, after having twins." Temari assures her.

"I can handle it. Besides, I fought Madara and lived. How hard can it be to stand around for a couple hours and smile at people?" Suki inquires.

About a half hour later, Suki got the answer to her question. The Kazekage family was dutifully standing outside the Academy and watching the newly minted Genin walk across the stage. It was a happy occasion. Everyone's eyes were alight with excitement and pride. Well everyone except for Suki.

She wanted nothing more at that moment than to go home and snuggle into husband's adoring arms. This was a lot harder than she thought it was going to be.

"Me next?" Karura asks and Gaara shakes his head in amusement.

"You'll have your turn to walk across that stage one day. It will just take a few years for you to get there. Don't worry though. You'll be a fine ninja. It just takes some time and practice." The red head assures his daughter.

"Okay!" She says and Suki finds herself smiling, despite her pain.

Gaara wraps his arms around his wifey comfortingly. Suki could be too stubborn for her own good sometimes. Thankfully, the ceremony was almost over. They could return home shortly.

"Lord Kazekage, Lady Suki. It is an honor to have the Kage family here. I can't tell you, how much it means to the children and their parents." One of the instructors says.

"The honor is all ours." Suki says as she hoped that her face didn't give away any of the agony that she was now experiencing.

Soon. Soon she would be home with her family and curled up in bed. Naturally, she would have her sexy red head laying next to her. Yes, that sounded so blissful and it was only a few minutes away.

All she had to do was be polite. She had to be regal. It was important to keep up a respectable image. After all, she wasn't just some ninja now. She was the Kazekage's wife and with that came certain responsibilities.

"I see that the twins are thriving, along with their elder sister." The teacher continues good-naturedly.

Suki was aware that he was only trying to be nice. That didn't stop her from wanting to punch him though. She was so close to going home and he just wouldn't shut up.

"Yes, they are. If you'll excuse us. It's been quite the long day. As I'm sure you aware, newborns tire easily. That and Karura is quite due for her nap. Give our best to your family." The Kage informs him smoothly.

At that moment, Suki had never wanted to kiss someone more. Thank goodness for her husband. Gaara realized what was going on and he took the necessary steps to ensure they made a polite exit, after bidding Temari and Kankuro good night.

"I told you that you didn't have to go, if you weren't feeling well enough." The red head chides her gently.

"I'm your wife. I'm supposed to be at public functions like that. Besides, the crowd adored them." Suki protests.

"Yes, I'm well aware that they were all very happy to see our children. Who wouldn't be? They are adorable. That doesn't change the fact that you should not push yourself like that, especially when it isn't necessary." He continues.

The raven haired woman was about to protest it WAS necessary, when she saw Gaara quickly put their children to bed. She raises an eyebrow when she saw the look in his eye. Oh this was going to be interesting.

She knew the "bossy look." Usually, her lover was quite content to allow her to take the reigns. She knew that's what it was though. Gaara LET her have the more control in the bedroom. He was still a Kage though. His default mode was authoritarian.

"It was necessary. People would have worried, if I wasn't there. Oh and don't give me that look." She warns him.

"No. I think that people would have realized rather easily why you weren't there and what look are you talking about? I'm not giving you a look." Gaara says.

Suki raises an eyebrow. Was he really going to try this? Was Gaara actually going to pretend that he didn't have a look? They both knew that he did.

"The Kage Look." She says as if that explained everything.

Now it was Gaara's turn to raise an eyebrow. He had no idea what his beautiful, though possibly mildly insane wife was talking about. He didn't have a Kage Look. What was that even supposed to mean?

"Uh huh. Elaborate about this Kage Look. I'm certain this will prove most entertaining." The red head replies dryly.

"You have a certain look when you are performing your Kagely duties, particularly when you are given orders. I call it the Kage Look." The raven haired beauty explains as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"I do? Hmm. I've never noticed. Well now I am using my Kage Look to tell you that you are going to get some rest." Gaara says as he scoops his wife up bridal style.

Suki giggles and wraps her arms around Gaara's neck. She didn't mind that order at all. Actually, that is actually what she had in mind. Of course, she couldn't let him know that. The Uchiha Matriarch still had her pride, after all.

"Make me." She says simply.

"Suki, you really shouldn't challenge me like that when you are still recovering. You, my love, are going to get some badly needed rest. I will hear no arguments on this matter. This is not a topic up for discussion." He informs her as he carries her off to their bed.

"Well I suppose this once, I can humor you." The ruby eyed woman muses.

Gaara just snorts in amusement. Suki was Suki. She had to turn everything into some sort of competition. That was just who she was. Perhaps it was an Uchiha thing.

Idly, he wondered if that meant their children would be just as stubborn as their beautiful mother. It was too early to tell yet. The red head decides to examine that thought another day because there was precious little he could do about it, even if that turned out to be the case.

"Good because this wasn't a request. It was an order." He states firmly as he lays her down on their bed gently.

"You know, you are kinda hot when you get bossy." Suki notes.

"You are just determined to torture me until we can be together again, aren't you?" He mutters as he lays next to his wife and wraps his arms around her protectively.

Suki smirks. Well it was always fun to taunt Gaara. He was just so wonderfully responsive. Sadly, that's all that it would be for now. A game.

"Maybe a little." She says with a yawn as she snuggles into him.

"I must be something of a masochist to have fallen in love with you. You are like a Siren from the ancient tales." He says with a sigh as he kisses the top of her head affectionately.

A Siren? She could work with that. Yes, she could definitely work with that. Well in a few months anyway.

"I love you. You know that, right?" Suki asks as she kisses him.

Gaara smiles and kisses back. He knew that. It was perhaps the one thing that he knew he could be sure of no matter what.

"I know that and I love you as well. More than you'll ever know. Though I must admit, sometimes you drive me to the brink of insanity. You should have more care for your own health." The Kazekage proclaims.

"I know. I'll be more careful. I promise." The Sand Ninja assures him.

"Good. I don't want to lose you." He tells her and caresses her cheek tenderly.

Suki smiles and leans into his caress. It still amazed her sometimes. Some days, she couldn't really believe that this was her life. She had a loving husband and three beautiful child. Oh and the fact that the Leaf no longer held any legal authority over her, well that was a nice bonus.

"You won't lose me. Not now. Not ever. Someday, when we are old and gray, I want you to remember that. We'll always find each other in this life and the next." The young mother vows as she lays her head on his chest.

She could hear the steady THUMP THUMP of his heart. It was strong and reliable. Just like him. He was her anchor.

"Yes, we will. Though I must confess that I am having a difficult time imagining you with gray hair." He states and as if to illustrate his point, he runs his fingers through her long, dark tresses.

"I could say the same about you. That's alright though. I quite like your red hair, but I'm not in love with your hair. I'm in love with you." Suki informs him.

"I feel the same way. As I told you a long time ago, we're the same." Gaara says as he laces his fingers with Suki's.

That's when Nala waddled into the bedroom and plops herself down on the bed. Suki raises an eyebrow at the slower than usual movements and glances at the Sand Cat carefully. That's when she noticed her belly was bigger than normal.

"I think that we may have given her to much catnip. It looks like she found herself a nice tomcat and decided to have a litter." Suki notes with a giggle.

"She takes after her owner then." Gaara muses as he watches another Sand Cat join Nala on the bed.

He glanced at the happy couple as if daring them to move him. Gaara and Suki only looked at each other and laughed. Their reaction was exactly the same.

"I don't think the kids will mind some more kitties running around the house." Suki says.

"Me neither. I know that I don't mind having my sex kitten curled up in my arms. So I don't know why actual cats should be any different." Gaara says with a smirk.

"Sex kitten? Really?" Suki asks and Gaara nods.

"Well sometimes you are also a Hellcat or a lioness, if that makes you feel better. Either way, I'm always happy to share my bed with you and the furballs." Gaara observes much to Suki's amusement.

She yawns cutely and curls up against Gaara. Everything was perfect in her mind. She had a sexy husband, three beautiful children, and some adorable Sand Cats. What could possibly be better than that, she asks herself as she falls asleep in Gaara's arms.


End file.
